


Insanity Breeches

by Jay_with_Splice



Category: Far Cry 3
Genre: Animal Attacks, Contains OCs, Drug Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-21
Updated: 2016-07-12
Packaged: 2018-01-25 23:29:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 28,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1666460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jay_with_Splice/pseuds/Jay_with_Splice
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of side missions issued out by the remaining pirates of Rook. All this to keep his secret safe from Hoyt Volker.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dog Hunt

Bridge Control was extremely loud, as it always was, when Jason neared the camp. Music was blasting out over the speakers and all around him, the pirates that had been accepted into the Privateer ranks, laughed and chatted and drank themselves stupid. Being so close to them these past weeks made Jason almost regret wanting to kill them earlier. _Almost_. Back on the North Island, there were still pirates here and there, and they certainly still attacked him on sight. Of course, they were dealt with swiftly. His brown eyes caught sight of a few familiar-faced pirates. Lewis, the crazed Molotov Man, was standing beside Hopper, whom was just an ordinary gunner. Both were completely wrecked; their faces were a bright flushed red and Hopper looked just about ready to pass out. Over near the speakers stood Angus, a very strange, very giggly Englishman whom was in desperate need to see a therapist. He had a devious grin on his face, and Jason decided he didn't want to know what he was planning.

Over by the fire-pits were Clause and Rock, the two Heavies of North Island. He had ran into them numerous times, and they were always intimidating. Both were cleaning their weapons diligently and chatting about something that Jason couldn't hear from where he stood. Then he saw Langley, the man that had called him on his phone in the first place. It was him that had asked him to come to Bridge Control this day. The thin, mowhawked man was seated on a fold-up chair near the main building. His feet were propped comfortably on a table and the chair he was in looked dangerously close to tipping over. Dark brown eyes glanced upwards to meet his own and the Warrior forced a grin. "Aye..." the pirate started and Jason already figured the man was high. "I was wondering when you were going to show up, _Foster_." That name Jason was going by was really starting to stick to him.

"I need your help...m'dog Lassie, my pride and joy, hasn't come back since I sent her off to Hoyt's compound." Langley's arm rose so his eyes could look at his wristwatch's time. He made an unfamiliar noise in the back of his throat. "I was wondering if you could head there and bring her back..." Jason wrinkled his nose at Langley's words. _Why would he risk his life for a dog who didn't even like him?_ Apparently, Langley appeared to know what was going through his head for he continued, "If you do this for me, I'll pay you five-hundred dollars and give ya some new upgrades for the MS16..."

 _That_ caught Jason's attention. The idea of money and new upgrades made the brunette's frown lessen. The bribe alone could make the trip worth it. However, the bites he might accumulate would get him numerous diseases on his part. Still, Jason kept his face blank and held his head up stiffly. "New upgrades and even some money, eh?" Hands crossing over his chest, Jason finally sighed, as if acting like he finally made up his mind. "Fine. Alright. I'll go get your dumb dog..." Jason glanced off to the side when a big, wide grin was offered to him from Langley. The pirate straightened up in his seat to hand the Warrior a sheet of paper.

"Just say that I sent ya to talk ta Hoyt...They'll let you in. And give this to the Business man when ya get there." Jason leaned forward to take the sheet from the pirate and with a scowl, said "I'll bring her back quick...I got to go meet up with someone afterwards though..." Jason thought it was smart to leave out Sam's name, in case the other was still working for Hoyt. He didn't want the Privateer helping him take down the Business Man to be killed. Langley said nothing more, so Jason took that as a chance to leave. He turned his back on the pirate and moved pass the dancing, drunken men towards the jeep he had pulled up in.

Sitting beside the jeep was Clank, a Pitbull that belonged to Rock. The Pitbull's eyes remained focused on the warrior standing before him. Moving around the hound, he climbed into the front seat and moved to turn on the engine with a spare key. A loud bark spouted from Clank, and Jason yelled out and cursed when the Pitbull leapt into the front seat, paws digging into his stomach and groin and clambering into the passenger's seat beside him. Glaring at the dog until it growled right back at him, he gave a roll of his eyes and his foot pressed into the gas pedal and off they drove down the dirt road. He ignored the way the ugly, scarred creature panted, the way his long tongue rolled out of his mouth with drool dribbling down from his wet appendage. Eyes turning away from the dog, he glanced towards the road and the inhabitants. Leopards chased down pigs, yowling and hissing angrily. Herds of Buffalo ran across the rolling hills while packs of wild dogs stalked through the grass. In other vehicles, Rakyat men patrolled diligently, keeping an eye out for any signs of unwanted Privateers.

He grumbled quietly to himself. Jason couldn't believe what he just got himself into! He had better things to do than go after some drugged up Pirate's dog! Especially since the pirate and dog duo had tried to kill him on multiple occasions. Sure, Jason did try to return the favor, but the fucker survived a gunshot to the head. Thoughts of the knife-fight against the man in question flashed through his mind. Just before the Warrior had went to meet up with Vaas in his building, Langley had intercepted him with a knife to his throat. Luckily, Jason had managed to rip Langley's pistol out of its holster at the last second and he shot him point-blank between the eyes.

Apparently even that wasn't enough to kill the pirate.

A bark from Clank and Jason noticed the compound was now in sight. Jason parked the jeep right outside the slightly open gate that led inside the compound. A soft grumble beneath his breath, and Jason climbed out of the vehicle, watching Clank leap out of the seat and dash through the open gate, his tail going at least a mile an hour. Jason followed after the creature and immediately located the large mansion-like building in the center of the compound. This place was much stranger than Bridge Control. He had already grown used to all the Pirates whom had fun while they worked. Here, all Jason could see and hear were captives getting tortured, and he could feel eyes boring into him. Up the steps, the Privateer guarding the entrance gave him a glare and stood in front of him, blocking his way. "Langley sent me here with something important to give to Hoyt..."

He watched the man raise up a walkie talkie and he stepped away to speak with Hoyt. Jason heard him say a few things like, "It's Foster..." and "Langley sent him..." The man went silent for a bit and he huffed, attaching the radio back to his waist. "Head in..." He pulled the door open and yelled angrily when Clank took the chance, rushing in and dashing upstairs. Jason watched as a few Privateers inside jumped out of the way before the ugly dog could knock them over with his size. When Jason moved inside, he heard the doorman curse, "Fucking pirates need to train their dogs better..." The door was closed and Jason snorted in its direction. That man was  a drama queen.

Moving upstairs after the Pitbull, he moved in the direction towards Hoyt's office. His eyes caught a suited woman crouched beside a familiar German Shepard. It was Lassie, and she appeared to have been shot in the leg. The female was working on removing the bullet from her hind leg and Clank had taken a seat beside the Shepard. He'd get them after giving this sheet of paper to Hoyt. Knocking on the door, he heard that god forsaken accent, "Come in Foster!" He did as he was told, merely raising his hand and setting the sheet on his desk. "Ah! So he finally turned it in!" Hoyt took the sheet and sat down in his seat, eyes glancing over the paper's contents. "Oh...Langley's dog got shot by a rebel on her way here. Meet Nadia and bring her back to him. She's done nothing but try to bite my men." A wave of his hand in dismissal and Jason wanted to do nothing more than to shoot him in the face.

A nod and out of the office Jason went, moving around the staircase and to the woman now wrapping up the dog's leg. Clank was now sitting beside the wounded dog; both Shepard and Pitbull seemed oddly content beside each other. "Uh...you're Nadia, yeah?" Jason caught the woman's attention and bright eyes met his. She stood and ran a hand through her hair.

"Yes...you are Foster, correct?" He opened his mouth to respond, but she cut him off, "You can take her back to her owner now. I have finished taking care of her wound...poor thing..." Her hand went to Lassie's head and she scratched her lovingly. How she could actually touch the thing without being bit shocked Jason.

"Yeah...I'll take her back...came here to do that in the first place." Jason glanced to Lassie and the German Shepard looked to him and gave a growl of warning. The fur on her spine fluffed up.

"Lassie dear...he is going to take you back to your owner, Langley..." At the name, the dog's ears perked and both Pitbull and Shepard took off down the stairs, both going slow so that Lassie wouldn't struggle too much. Watching them go, Jason began to move after them but Nadia's voice echoed after him, "Make sure you keep an eye out for Snow White..." The way she said those last two words made him freeze up a bit, but continued walking.

Stepping outside, he took a deep breath; the female's words had gave him a sense of anxiety. What if she knew? A swallow and off to the Jeep he went, giving a glare to the two animals that had both stuffed themselves into the passenger's seat. Clank was more than in the driver's seat and Jason had to push the dog more to the side to be able to sit down. Clank was easily moved and Jason, with a frown, started up the jeep and set it in drive. All he had to look forward too was more money and newer upgrades for a gun. Was it really worth it?

It was.


	2. Click, Clack, Boom!

Jason regretted the fact that he always found himself coming back to Bridge Control. The place wasn't terrible. The scenery was always beautiful and the amount of vehicles here was amazing. And yet, coming to this place felt like sniffing a whole bag of coke and drinking five bottles of vodka. And that was always a headache. Thankfully, the pirates were far more calm than the last time he'd been here. The music was still loud, and pirates still loitered around. But the only bottles of alchol he could see were all those in the recycling bin. Jason briefly wondered where Lewis was. Memories of the phone call he got from the Molotov man earlier flashed through his head. It was hard to really understand him over the phone. His accent was so slurred and heavily thick. When Jason got to Bridge Control, Rock, the large, fire-loving Heavy, told him that Lewis was out on a mission that had been issued by Hoyt. A scowl from Jason, and the Warrior sat in the grass and glared at the ground. Lewis wasn't even here!

Then he heard the ever so annoying ringtone of his phone and the brunette reached for it, tugging it out of his pocket. He did think about taking a break for once. He did deserve it after having to mess with all of Hoyt's 'nice things'. Raising the phone up to his ear, he heard the familiar tone of Lewis on the other end. "Where'th'ell are'ye?" Lewis asked with a hint of annoyance in his tone. "Oi'taugh'ah told'ye'ta come ta'th' bridge tha'ov'a looks'th ravine!" Jason felt his brow twitch and his lips pulled into a snarl.

"No...you didn't. You told me to meet you at Bridge Control." There was silence that overtook the other end of the line and Jason thought of slugging Lewis the next time he saw him. His jaw clenched in annoyance when Lewis suddenly burst out into a loud fit of laughter.

"Oh'shi'! Pfffffft ahahahaha! Moi'bad!" He continued on with his loud hyena laughter and Jason already began to feel a headache start to form in his annoyance. "Yeeeaa'...so'th' ravine. Where'ya bust'ose traitor priv'teers! 'urry up, 'urry up!" Jason's brow wrinkled as he thought back to the incident. The run to the bridge, the zip-lining, men shooting at him from every direction. That was possibly the worst run of his life and it would have been literally impossible if he didn't have those Untouchable shots.

"Fine. I'll be there soon..." When Jason hung up, he nearly threw the phone into the lake beside the camp. His grip remained tight on the phone and he finally jabbed the item back into his pocket. Standing up and hauling his rucksack back over his shoulder, followed by the three gun holsters he had, Jason stormed pass Randall and beelined it for his chosen vehicle, a Jeep colored green. A sour frown was on his face as he climbed into the metal, driving machine, turning on the engine and pulling out of the camp. He felt ready to strangle someone. Maybe one the way he could find an outpost he could liberate...

Unfortunately that wasn't so. It was to his misfortune that Jason could drive directly to that god forsaken bridge without running into a single outpost. Climbing angrily out of the Jeep, he glared at the pirate sitting up on the railing of the bridge, feet dangling over the side. He would have pushed him off if it weren't for McDuvan being there. Jason recalled the Privateer from when he first got to this island. The man wanted him to get rid of Langley's relics. The Privateer immediately glared at him the moment he arrived, but Jason paid him no mind as he approached the short male. "Fosta'!" Lewis cheered, climbing back onto the bridge, ruining Jason's plans. "Aboot toime you'sorreh 'ide showed up! Oi was gittin'all 'orried an' shi'!" A hand waved in the Privateer's direction. "Retrie'th' shi' from'th' car..." Jason watched McDuvan grumpily move towards a large armored car, reaching into the back to pull out a large crate.

"Oi undastan'ya use ziploines a'lo'?" The large crate was set on the ground beside Jason; the wooden top was pried off with a large crowbar. Inside were C-4 charges, but there was something off about them. "We'nee'ta set up the'e babies'all down th'ravine...in e'ery cra'e, riggin', e'erythin'." A grin crossed Lewis' face, looking demented in almost every way. "Ya'git ta set'i' up...then de'onate when ya'git back ta'th' bri'ge...thou'...these are sti'prot'types...blow up one, th'othas will star'ta chain." Jason glared at McDuvan, the Privateer having shoved the testy explosives into his arms.

Glancing over them, Jason gave a grumbling nod, and moved off the right side of the bridge, heading towards the small shack that evidently had the zipline that lead further into the riggings borderlining the ravine that overlooked the deep blue river. Stuffing the C-4 Charges into his explosives sack, before jumping up to grab onto the handle he could use to zipline across the way. Momentum immediately caught hold of him, pulling Jason forward and flying across the river. Wind tussled his brunette hair, the pistol at his hip glistened with the sun's bright rays. His feet touched the ground on the opposite side, and Jason took the time to lock it into place for a quick and easy access back.

One of the charges was then attached to a box of crates that looked about filled to the brim with ammunition. He watched some ammunition go tumbling down from the top of the crate, hitting the pavement and go rolling over the rocky cliff. He stepped back from it, being careful to not cause the thing to detonate. Running down the platform, he slipped into a small mine to plant two more of them amongst the rubble and crates. Jason took up a piece of armor and wrapped it around his shoulders as he jogged out of the cave and back towards the next zipline. Staring out over the ravine, Jason took a hold of the next handle and zipped across to continue planting explosives. This task was relatively easy; all he had to watch out for was a hot surface or jostling the switch he had that made everything explode.

 _"How you doing, Foster?"_ Lewis' question came through in the form of a text. Jason scowled at the text as he planted the last one on the legs of a tall guard tower, the one where he stood to take a picture of the meeting in the first place. _"Done."_ Was all he texted back to the Molotov Man. Already on the way back, Jason debated blowing it up immediately and just diving into the water, but he decided against it, already heading towards the zipline that would take him back to the bridge where Lewis and McDuvan were waiting. On the way back, Jason didn't bother to tie off the ziplines, seeing as they'd be destroyed when he clicked the trigger and set off the chain.

He drew all the more closer to the final zipline and before he rode across the ravine, he retrieved the button from his lootsack, thumb digging into the trigger and activating the explosives. From all the way down the ravine, he could see and hear the large explosion. He saw fire spitting out and enveloping even more wooden crates and riggings. More explosions followed and Jason was quick to ride across the zipline before the final few blew up. Jason heard Lewis and McDuvan yowling with laughter at the sight of the explosions and the fire. "Now THAT was something!" McDuvan laughed out, hands crossed over his chest and chiseled jaw stretched open in his laughter. Jason watched, with some discomfort, as the zipline he had just used was enveloped in fire.

He climbed up the minor hill, and pass the tiny shack to get back to the duo, whom were still howling with laughter and excitement from the whole dilemma. Black smoke had begun to pillar up to the sky and Jason could only watch the bright blue begin to turn an inky grey from the amounts of smoke. It began to smell god awful and Jason's nose wrinkled at the very scent of it. McDuvan finally made a noise of discomfort at the smell but Lewis still seemed hyped up about all the destruction he had helped caused. "Well! Those C-4 char'es turned'ou' damn well! A lil' minor twee's an'they'll be per'ec'!" No words were said to McDuvan as Lewis headed to the direction of the armored van they had brought.

Near obediently, McDuvan retacked the lid back onto the crate and hurried it into the back of the van. "Well done Fosta'." Lewis finally spoke. "Oi'll be'in contac'wi' ya if oi need ya'fo' anythin' else...m'kay?" A small noise from Jason and Lewis took it as a sign of approval, when really it was of annoyance. "Don't cause tew'mooch trouble." With a frown, Jason watched the duo climb into the front seat and drive off, leaving him behind with the destruction of the traitor's once safe haven. Smoke still billowed, and Jason shook his head and headed to his own vehicle.


	3. Blame it on the Moonshine

Finally.

Finally he had his chance to calm down. Due to his destruction of the radio signal that broke off all of Hoyt's connection to the outside world, Jason had to resort to using a dumb walkie talkie to communicate with those dumb pirates that, nowadays, kept getting in contact with him to do certain things for them. However, today was one of the only reasons he felt comfortable heading over to Bridge Control.

Lewis had gotten in contact with him. The always drunken man had bargained with him about taking the night off for once. His exact words mostly involved getting drunk, playing some poker, and trying the new recipe to Lewis' home-made Moonshine. The whole thought of getting completely shitfaced was a great idea in Jason's own mind. The main building was where Lewis said they would meet, along with maybe three other pirates. As far as he knew, Langley had said he wanted nothing to do with the party. What was even stranger is that Rock, Clause, and Hopper downright refused to join the party as well.

Pushing open the familiar bright red door, Jason stepped inside the dimly lit room and sat down at the fold up table where three familiar faces sat. The fourth individual was a mystery to him. Those he could recognize were Randall "Rasputin" McGee, Angus Malcreath, and the drunkard himself, Lewis...whose last name was unknown to him. All eyes trained on him the moment he sat down, but it was Angus who was the first to speak. "Ah! Brody! Glad of you to join." It made him feel slightly uncomfortable that all of the pirates here knew who he really was.

"This man is Carlos...he was Vaas' second in command. " He jabbed his finger at the man who he was silently sitting beside him. Carlos gave the Jason a wave with his free hand, before he, Lewis, and Randall let out a noise of anger when Angus messed up all the cards and chips. "Better start over since Brody arrived!" Angus laughed. "I had a bad hand anyways!" Jason saw anger in the other three pirate's eyes, but none of them moved to punch him, shoot him, or strangle him. Instead, Carlos collected all the cards, reassorted all the chips, and shuffled them up with a scowl. This time, it was Randall who spoke up.

"Lewis...did you forget to bring the Moonshine? Cuz seriously...I need to get drunk." Jason's eyes fell on the man's right arm, which was sporting a handmade weapon that had been used against him only once. From what he found out from Hopper, Randall was at a camp he had gone to liberate, and an explosion he shot off had exploded debris into Randall's arm, effectively breaking it beyond all repair and apparently, Randall's first thought was to chop it off and flee. Now it had been replaced by a metallic prosthetic arm that had a small gun built inside of it. At Randall's question, the Molotov Man grinned a wide grin and leaned down beside his seat, only to lean back up and settle five bottles on the table in front of him.

"A per'ec'ed rec'pe also...cause' mo'buzz an'un." Jason took a bottle when the others did and he popped the cork. A sniff from the lid, a strong scent hit him hard, and he grinned. This would work very nicely to get him hammered. Swirling the contents in the bottle around, he let his eyes shift to Carlos and Randall. The duo were both pouring a small amount into a glass beside them and taking small sips from it. Lewis and Angus were just chugging their's down without a care in the world. Carlos resumed passing out the cards, and before Jason grabbed his own hand, he took a large drink from the Moonshine.

That was the last thing he could remember.

Lazy movement as his own hand sifted through his brown hair. Suddenly his brown eyes shot open and Jason sat up as fast as he could, his head screaming in pain at the brash, abrupt movement. Both hands surged to his temples, rubbing in firm, small circles to help calm his pounding headache. With a quick glance around, he found himself in a small room and clothes-less. A peek under the sheet and he was relieved to find his boxers were still on. Clambering to his feet, Jason stumbled over to the chair and went to put everything back on, the privateer uniform he stole,his lootsack, his grenade holders, and his syringe kit. The only things he couldn't find were his guns and their holsters.

Finally moving to the door, he pushed it open only to discover where he was. Badtown. He was in Badtown. All around him, men and women moved and talked and went about their daily lives like nothing was wrong. A few more steps outside and the radio at his waist began to go off with an awful static sound. Someone was trying to get in contact with him. Removing the walkie talkie, he brought it up to his ear. "Hello-?"

"There you are!" An unknown voice yelled over him angrily. "You said we'd head back at seven...and it's eight." Blinking in confusion, Jason shook his head.

"Right. Right...sorry...uh...where are you right now?" He heard the unknown man huff in annoyance.

"We have the chopper parked on the clear road by Nat's Repairs. Hurry up." The man on the other end disconnected and Jason immediately began to get in contact with the first person he could think of. Langley. When he finally got through, the first thing he could hear was Lassie's heavy panting and the sound of a buzzer.

"Sup?" Langley's voice came through next. He sounded as though he didn't care why he was talking.

"Uh...I'm at Badtown..."

He heard silence and almost immediately, "You drank the Moonshine. Didn't you?" Jason paused.

"Uh...yeah...can't remember anything that happened last night..." Another hand ran through his hair.

"Mmm yeah...s'why I didn't go...tell you what. Meet me back at Bridge Control and I'll help you out..." A soft sigh of relief left Jason's lips as he disconnected and almost immediately he headed for the exit gate of Badtown. He was glad to see a slightly damaged ATV parked outside the gate and, climbing on, he drove off down the street.

Wind blew through his hair as he drove past Rakyat, and villagers alike. Both slowed down when he passed by and it didn't take too long for him to reach Nat's Repairs. He abandoned the ATV and he glanced down the road when he heard helicopter blades slicing through the air in preparation of departing. The man standing beside the helicopter was neither dressed as a Privateer or a Pirate, so Jason didn't know whether or not he was a friend or foe. Approaching him, the man glanced at him and smirked, hand balling into a fist and beating at the metal door. "He's here." The fist went open-palmed and the door was pulled open for Jason as he approached.

A woman was in the front seat, looking antsy and anxious. She did look sort of familiar. "Yeah. Hurry up and close that door." Jason put on the headset and climbed into the back seat so the woman's co-pilot could take the front. "We'll hover over the island, but we ain't landing. Too dangerous." Jason gave the woman a nod, and watched her flip some switches and up went the copter into the air. Jason peered out the window as the copter flew over the North Island and over the ocean.

"You were shitfaced last night." The female pilot laughed. "Came stumbling over to us, asking if we could take you to the North island for a party you were going to." Jason felt his ears heat up in embarrassment. "Course...Phil here thought you were pretty crazy for not having any weapons on you, considering how dangerous these islands are." Alright. So he did lose them somewhere on South Island. "And now you're gonna go back...hope you have something to break your fall..."

A quick check, and Jason was pleased to see the wingsuit Willus had given him. Quickly checking for any damage, he was glad to see that there were no holes in the tapestry and wings. "Yeah...I'll be fine." He found himself once again peering out the window. The South Island was much closer and Jason was getting more impatient. He just wanted his weapons back and to forget about this whole ordeal.

"Alright. We're ready..." The pilot glanced back at him, eyes sparkling. "Get ready to jump." Jason hauled open the door, removing the headset and passing it forward.

"We will close the door behind you, you mad man. Good luck!" 'Phil' informed from the passenger's side. The wind blew his face and he closed his eyes, letting go of the door and dropping over the side. He plummeted. Lips were pushed together, he let himself fall a while, before extending his arms, the wings catching hold on the wind and allowing him to glide over the vast ocean. The wind wasn't so harsh now and his eyes opened to survey his surroundings. He heard an Eagle's call and a small smirk grew.

This place would have been a nice paradise if there weren't for people trying to kill him at different times of each day. Finally deeming himself close enough to the ground, he pulled the string to his parachute and felt the massive cloth catch fully on the wind and the initial jerk nearly knocked the wind out of him. The drift towards the ground was quick, and when his feet touched the ground, Jason stuffed the parachute back into its pack and took off. He knew where he was and which direction Bridge Control was in. When he got to the outpost, there was a jeep outside with Langley seated inside it. In the back was Carlos and Lassie.

Carlos crossed his arms. "You are a lightweight when it comes to the Moonshine...yet...everyone but Lewis is also..." Jason climbed into the passenger seat. "After we played poker for awhile, you and Lewis declared you were heading to Hoyt's camp to auction some stuff off to the highest bidder..." A hand ran through his shorn hair. "So we best try there first." Langley gave a swift nod, foot pressing into the gas and taking off down the street. Lassie's long tongue hung from her mouth, her coat was much shorter, having been shaved down to her skin. She looked even stranger and, for some reason, much more threatening and ugly than usual.

Langley drove off the street, the tires screeching down the cliff as he applied the breaks and sharply jerked the wheel to the left. The Jeep came to a complete halt in front of the Compound and Jason remembered why he shouldn't ever let Langley drive. Nonetheless, he hauled himself out of the vehicle and the trio, Langley, Jason, and Lassie moved inside. "I'll wait here!" Carlos had called after them. Lassie ran to the head of the group and sat down comfortably in a patch of grass. Jason glanced around the compound and found his eyes falling on a man looking over a gun holster. One of his gun holsters.

"Hey!" Jason found himself running over to the Privateer and Langley ran after him. The man looked up at the exclamation and he looked up at Jason as he drew near.

"Oh...it's you!" The man grinned up at Jason. "Nice guns you got here...didn't know why or how you got them but they're quite-"

"I need them back..." He interrupted the Privateer.

"Oh..." The man scratched at his stubbly chin in thought. "Well...I bought these off you for...about...five-thousand?" More thoughts wen through the man's head. "And these are some fine pieces of metal...well-taken care of and-"

"Come on...I'll pay you back...plus interest." Jason crossed his arms over his chest. It was very easy for him to come about money here. And sure, he didn't need the guns really. It was his gun holsters he really needed. He worked hard finding those animals and skinning them. Jason didn't want to go through that again.

The Privateer seemed to be a bit doubtful and unwilling to trade, but then, "I'll throw in..." the familiar _cachik!_ of a gun, "My MS16..." Langley displayed the gun to the man and Jason saw a twitch of a grin form on the male's face.

"The famous Langley's MS16, eh? The gun he's used to kill many rebels and traitors alike..." The man returned the gun in the holster he was looking at. "You drive a hard bargain...I'll do it..." The Privateer scooted back so Jason could take up all four of his weapons, hanging them over his shoulders and attaching the pistol holster to his thigh. He did miss the familiar weight on him. "Alright! The MS16 please." Langley tossed the gun to the man, which he eagerly caught and settled in his lap. Jason, in turn, retrieved his wallet and pulled out a good six-thousand dollars. The man took that also, and the duo turned away and headed back to the vehicle outside the compound.

"You gave up your original gun to help me...?" Jason asked Langley once they returned to the car.

"Pffft." Langley snorted. "Naah...that gun wasn't the original I started out with on these damn islands. The original MS16 is somewhere at the bottom of the ocean...lost it when we were being taken here after you murdered Vaas." Jason watched Langley put his fingers to his lips, whistling loudly to call for Lassie. A howl responded, and Lassie was in the Jeep beside Jason in a minute tops. The Warrior was thankful Carlos was behind the wheel this time. "Anyways...you mentioned you had some extra items in your rucksack?"

Remembering, Jason nodded and opened the bag in question. "Yeah..." He retrieved a necklace of pearls, some woman's undergarments, a large packet of cocaine, a photo of a man and woman, a strange looking relic with eyes made of emerald, and somehow another bottle of Moonshine. The two pirates stared at the items with their mouths agape.

"Well..." Carlos started with a smirk and a shake of his head, "Where to next?"

"...Probably Lewis..." Jason replied. "I do want to know what I got myself into last night."


	4. Recover Vozrozhdat

Clause was a tall, intimidating figure mounted with muscles, a cold personality, dark eyes that could intimidate a  rabid bear, and a fierce looking LMG, along with bullet-proof armor covering his body from surprise attacks. Clause had never once spoken to Jason since he had arrived on the South Island. Hell, he didn't even give him a passing glance. So Jason was quite surprised when it was Clause that had called him to, not Bridge Control, but to Thurston Town. The Heavy was leaning outside the bar, the LMG resting on his shoulder, and his gaze to the fence.

"Foster..." He greeted when Jason approached. A glance around and Jason gave a hum at the Heavy's acknowledgement of his arrival. There were Privateers all around this town...it only made sense why Clause used the fake name. "I have something for you to do...but...ve must head inside..." The man reached into his pocket and withdrew a key, pointing over to one of the houses inside the town. The house was the same house Sam had took him into when they had first met. "Let us go and ve discuss more..." Jason followed the Heavy towards the house and in through the door. He watched the man reach up and tug at the dangling light. The bulb turned bright and revealed the dark room.

"Now listen, Brody..." Clause stated sternly once the door closed. The Heavy Hitter turned to face the smaller man and thick arms crossed over his chest. "I need you to head to North Island...I have boat set up if you so choose to go, but only you can complete this mission vith nobody dying." Jason paused at that, glaring at the other through half-lidded eyes.

"How can I be the only one who can do this without death?" The Warrior swore he saw Clause's lip twitch in a light grin.

"Because...I need you to go into Citra's Temple." The mention of the name made Jason's mouth fall open a bit.

"Why do you want me to go to Citra's Temple? Cuz I can sneak in without being noticed? Do you want me to be placing any explosives to blow them all up?!" Jason was forced to be quiet when Clause's hand stretched out to cover the brunette's lips.

"Shut up...be quiet...I do not need you to place anything. Who do I look like, Lewis?" A brow rose and Clause removed his hand from Jason's face, causing Jason to back-peddle before he could do it again.. "I need you to get something for me. A little box. You see...vhen you killed Vaas, the living pirates ran off to North and South island, taking nothing but shirts on their backs and their flesh..." Jason stepped back from the taller man and glanced upwards to look him in the eye. "We did not have time to take anything else, and vhen Rakyat's came, they commandeered everything there..."

"So you want me to go to Citra's temple to retrieve this thing that you left behind?" A nod was Jason's response.

"Unfortunately I cannot supply a helicopter, for Hoyt vould be getting suspicious. Instead I offer transport on a speedboat." Jason glanced out the dirty window and he grumbled something quietly beneath his breath. "I can give you something in return. I carry no money on me, but I can give upgrades. Upgrades to any and all LMG's you own." Jason let his eyes drift back to look at Clause and he gave a sigh.

"Alright, alright...I'm doing it for the upgrades though." Jason caught the light crack of a grin that appeared on Clause's face and the duo exited the building and headed down to the beach where Clause had stashed the speedboat.

The fresh sea air refreshed the duo as Jason assisted Clause in pushing the speedboat into the water, both jumping on as it floated into the deeper area. Clause settled into the driver's seat, pulling out an old, worn map and making a few marks on it with a pencil that was snapped in half. Jason watched the Heavy stuff the map back into his pant's pocket. "Oh..and if you find anything else, like interesting rectangular box, that is small amount of Lewis' knife collection. If find objects with familiar names on them, feel free to grab them." Jason opened his mouth to retort. "Or risk being called by them to get items back and throw you off your main mission even more than necessary..." That made Jason rethink speaking his mind.

Instead, he watched the Heavy start up the boat and off they skipped across the waves. Schools of fish swam out of the way of the boat's path, choosing the alternative and swimming further beneath the rolling waves. The sky was clear with barely any clouds up in those light blue hues. The waves rolled with their boat, the North Island growing closer and closer with each passing second. A glance upwards again, and he let his head tilt to the side at the helicopter up there. "Ah..." He heard Clause. "Is HagRaven...name of the helicopter that Nyreene flies. She is supplier to the villagers. Brings them seeds to plant crops and other items."

"Nyreene...I met her a few weeks back when I recovered from Lewis' party...who is Nyreene though?" Jason leaned back and the Warrior saw the way the Russian man's face twisted into a snarl.

"Is Veena's little sister." The mention of the woman's name made Jason freeze up. His gaze immediately hit the water. She had gotten in his way. She had followed the boat he and Oliver had used to escape, jumped aboard from a bridge and attacked him. Jason had to protect his friend from the sharp blade of her machete. No matter how many times he had sliced her, she didn't stop.

Only then did he stab her through the chest. Jason could still hear Langley's scream and the way the life had faded in her eyes, the way he slid the blade out and the way her body fell backwards into the river. Afterwards, Jason had spent an hour washing the blood off his knife in the cavern where his friends were. Even now, he still couldn't believe he had murdered a woman, even if she was a murderer herself. A shake of his head brought himself back to reality and he glanced to Clause, the Heavy having fallen silent at the very mention of the woman. "I did give her chances to bail...but she didn't...my friends come first." Once again, Jason fell silent. He had promised to stay with Citra, until he found out Riley was alive. Now, he was torn. Jason swallowed at the cold look that was given to him, the snarl still present on Clause's lips.

"She was our friend." The ride became very awkward for Jason and the brunette just figured he should be quiet until they reached the North Island. The motor shut off the minute the boat pulled up on the beach closest to Citra's Temple, and Jason clambered out of the boat with little difficulty. "I will be waiting here..." A nod was given to the Heavy and the smaller man ran up the beach, passing bushes and trees and the occasional deer herd that fled when he came close. Slowing down when he found one wall of the temple, he walked the length of it until he found the entrance.

The doors opened before him like they always did and Jason took in a deep breath, moving inside. If he was lucky, he wouldn't run into anyone who wanted to talk to him about his goal in killing Hoyt. Walking through a series of hallways, he located a room inside the temple filled with items, some of it resembling useless junk. One Rakyat, whom looked oddly fixated on the items, was standing in the room also. "Uh...hey. You're in charge of looking after these, right?" A glance to the items, he spotted a box with 'Clause' written at the left bottom.

"Mmhmm..." A lazy response as the Rakyat took up a rectangular case. Immediately Jason knew that was Lewis' the moment he opened it up to reveal exotic looking knives. Probably from many different regions and cultures. Lewis also probably stole all of them.

"Yeah...what do I gotta give to get some of this shit for myself?"

"Mmph...this is actually a 'take it if you like it' shelf...the pirate's shit we commandeered isn't really all that impressive...fist time I saw these knives though..." Jason, while the Rakyat was talking, took up the box that Clause wanted him to retrieve, stuffing it into his rucksack. A few more items followed. He'd give them to the owners when he got back to Bridge Control. "Think I'll keep these...these are some fancy fucking knives." Jason gave a snort.

"They look pretty dull to me..." He might as well get the knives now...lest he face Lewis' drunken ranting. The look the Rakyat gave him was of confusion. "Besides, what use would you have them for? They're from different regions, most likely used for different cultures and religions..." A brow raised from the Rakyat. Finally, a snort, the case was closed and set back with the rest of the commandeered items.

"If you want them, Warrior. All you had to do was say so." A huff, and the Rakyat heard a call from outside. Quickly, he made his way out of the room, giving Jason the chance to grab the case and stuff it into his rucksack. All the other names there he didn't recognize, so the Warrior made his way out of the room, pass the meeting Dennis was giving to the men and right back out of the Temple. Waiting for the large doors to close, he finally made his way back in the direction he came, pushing through the plant life and stepping out onto the beach.

"You got the box?" Clause was not in the boat, moreso outside of it and getting ready to push the boat right back into the water to depart.

"Mhm." Jason retrieved the small box from the sack and held it out to the Heavy. He watched as the massive man took a hold of the box as delicately as he could and flicked it open. The contents inside were hidden from Jason's view. "What's in there...if I can ask?" Jason saw Clause's eyes raise to meet his, and another small grin crossed is face. An item was removed, a small locket. He didn't expect to see something like that.

"Is filled with favorite pictures of family..." The locket was opened and the contents were revealed. "Little boy is little brother back in Russia. Old woman is mother. All my paychecks I get here to go them to keep them living comfortably..." Jason eye the family, bright smiles despite the cold snow they were covered in. "I plan on going home...once Hoyt is taken care of. Hoyt is using family as means of keeping me in line. That, and life here is too soft for man like me." Jason couldn't help the laugh that left his lips.

"Big guy like you would think even Russia is too soft. You can take on anything, big guy." Jason was relieved when Clause returned the laugh, giving one big push to get the boat into the water and the duo hopped aboard once again. Clause tucked the locket into his pocket and sat behind the wheel.

"Let us head back before we are missed, da?" Jason nodded and with that, the duo's boat took off back across the waves.


	5. Burn the Evidence

"You see my predicament?"

Jason was leaning back in a chair across from Rock. Rock was jjust as big as Clause with dark skin, dark hair, chisled features and chocolate hues. He had welcomed Jason when Langley had first explained to them that they were helping Jason.The flamethrower carrying Heavy had his arms crossed and he kept a straight look on his face. "Hoyt requests me to go and burn everything down...however...I already have work to be doing here." The warrior could already see where this was going, and Jason really had no problems doing it. "But...I want you to take this..." Rock jabbed a finger at a fine looking flamethrower. "I built it with the parts you retrieved for me from Citra's temple. Thank you for that, by the way." Jason gave a nod and heaved himself up, moving to the flamethrower, taking it up, holding it in his grip, and examining it thoroughly. It felt right.

"Extended range, a larger canteen holding the gasoline, and the hotter the gas, the more dangerous and devastating the area will be left." Rock heaved himself up as well and moved towards the other. "You go to this location," A map with a circled location was handed to Jason and he continued, "Destroy everything there and leave nothing left of the temple or traitors." Jason let his hands run over the flamethrower and, removing the shotgun from one of his holsters, he fit the flamethrower in and grinned.

"Yeah...I can handle them...handle them like I did Vaas' weed fields that one time." He glanced over when he heard a snort of amusement from Rock.

"Langley was there and he wasn't happy...Man was crazy and antsy for a week until we got new shipments from this island..." Jason laughed at Rock and he glanced to where Langley was. The pirate's feet were currently propped up on a sleeping Lewis, whom was on the ground with his head leaning against a crate. Langley looked completely out of it, judging from the cigar between his fingers.

"Hoyt must be working you guys to the bone these days..." Jason added in with a light frown replacing his smile.

"It is true. Thanks to your liberating outposts, more Rakyat have shown up. You are lucky we are in charge of this place and the area around it." Jason gave a nod and finally he was dismissed to do his thing. "Contact me or head back here once you're done." Rock told him with a crooked smile and a wave. Jason gave Rock a thumbs up as the Heavy turned and began walking towards the main building. He probably had a lot of paperwork to start on. A brief check of the map, and Jason clambered onto the ATV outside the camp. A turn of the ignition, and the the vehicle came to life with a humm. The new flamethrower felt right in one of three gun holsters he had hanging from his back. Like he was meant to own this new weapon. The large tires caught onto the road and pulled him and the vehicle forward. Jason revved the engine and put on some speed to get to the location much quicker.

Jason cut corners, driving off road, and carefully down steep cliffs. Jason would have to in order to get to the destination anyways. The location was somewhere within the jungle inside an old temple. The ATV jerked side to side as he went off road, driving over rocks and plants, and probably a few mice. Turning the music off, he listened for the voices of the traitors. He wasn't fully sure how close he was to the nearest outpost he had yet to liberate, but he could just barely hear the chatter of men through the thick span of trees. The ATV was shut off and ever so quietly, he removed the flamethrower from his back and followed the voices. He stepped over branches and bushes, grinning lightly as he grew closer. Peering around an old tree, he spotted two Privateers talking angrily.

"Some Privateer named Foster broke down the old riggings. It's bullshit!" One growled while the other nodded his head in agreement.

"It is utter bullshit. The leaders were even killed and the list with all the names was given to Hoyt!" Glancing at the knob that controlled the heat of the fire, he turned it up from yellow, to orange. A deep blue color appeared to be the hottest flame setting. The flame flicked once, twice, three times before settling and Jason decided now was a good time as any to begin wrecking the traitor's new base. He stepped out of hiding, pulled the trigger and surprised the men that had been chatting.

"Shit!" They only had time to screech the word, before they completely burned to death. The smell of scorched flesh made Jason's nose wrinkle and he turned his gaze to the entrance of the temple. Yelling from the living traitors told the Warrior that they were on their way. Jason grinned when the fire already began to catch hold on the temple itself, and quickly, he ran inside to finish the job and bring an end to the traitor's lives.

Each traitor privateer Jason ran into, he torched to blackened corpses. The smell was still god awful, but he continued on with his assigned work. The further in he went, the more the place began to catch fire and  the more lives he took. Still, he found no signs of the captains in charge. Time ticked on, the fire began to spread and smoke began to fill up the cramped space. Less and less people ran to fight the further he moved in.

Sliding to a halt as he neared the final room, Jason peeked inside and saw three Heavies. A small, quiet curse, before he whipped out his knife. If he was lucky, Jason would be able to chain kill the Heavies and be done with this whole thing altogether. These Heavies were probably the  Captains of this pathetic squadrant and he was more than ready to deal with him. Spinning the knife in his grip, Jason rolled out of hiding and dug the knife straight into the gut of the first Heavy, stabbing hard and pushing through that thick armor they wore. The knife was torn out, the body kicked to the side, the knife entered the back of the second Heavy. The same results happened. The body dropped and Jason turned to the final Heavy. The last Heavy was staring calmly at the flamethrower in Jason's hands, unaffected by the fire for the armor he wore was fireproof. Unlike the other two Heavies, he was a Flamethrower carrying Heavy.

"Ah, so Rock sent you in his place...must be a busy man to not face his destiny." The Heavy shook his head with a disappointed look withdrew his own Flamethrower. The flamethrower itself wasn't too impressive, but the fireproof armor told Jason he'd have to use something other than the flamethrower Rock was kind enough to let him use. And he knew he had lost his chance to swiftly kill the man with his knife.

"I don't know what you're getting at, but Rock doesn't have time to show up to fucking kill you." The angered look on the man's face gave Jason some gratification. It wasn't hard to piss people off here. "'sides, a respectable, high status pirate like him doesn't have to face a wimp bitch like you."

"That man stole my title! That man should have come to face his death with honor!" The Flamer Heavy shouted and Jason just snorted in response. A glance to the walls, and Jason began to panic when he saw just how fast this place was coming down. He had to finish this. Jason had to kill the Heavy before him. Jabbing the knife back into its holster, he whipped out his Ace, holding it tightly in his grip. "Cheating in a flame war!" _This man is nuts_ , Jason thought. Then again, this was Rook Island, home to insane pirates and privateers galore. Hell, even some of the Rakyat and villagers were crazy.

"Yeah...I've never been a 'follow the rules' sort of guy..." Jason hissed, pulling the trigger and firing rapidly at the Heavy. The man ducked out of the way, raising his own weapon and flames erupted from the nozzle at Jason. He ducked out of the way just in the nick of time, but the heat was beginning to get to him. Sweat was dripping from is forehead.

"In this fight, you will not win! I have the element on my side! I am fireproof!" A crick of a grin flashed on Jason's face as he stepped out of hiding once again.

"Yeah...but you're not bulletproof."

Jason went running out of the temple as it collapsed behind him. He had filled the man in charge full of bullet holes and caused even more fires in the belly of the temple. This time, he hoped every single last one of the traitors were gone now. He was getting bored of having to deal with them. Jason jumped onto the ATV he had parked, watching the entire temple go up in flames. The fire raged on, engulfing the leaves and trees and bushes around the temple. Smaller rodents ran for cover. A light grin, and he drove off back to Bridge Control. When he arrived at the outpost in question, Rock was standing on the second floor of the main building, watching black smoke filter into the sky. "Nice job Brody..." He complimented. "Very nice job. Sie sind ein wahrer Krieger."

"I have to meet up with-"

"I understand. Your payment for helping me is the flamethrower." He gestured to the weapon in Jason's holster. The brunette glanced at it and sent a light grin at Rock.

"Thanks...get in contact with me if you need anything else, alright?" There was a nod from Rock and Jason went off on his way, thinking that out of all the pirates, Rock had to be the one he respected the most.


	6. Temples, Relics, and Traps

The ocean was a vast, miraculous thing. It stretched on for miles both horizontally and vertically. Creatures thought extinct still survived down in the deepest, darkest depths. It held vast, underwater caverns and ruins and temples that nobody has ever documented or explored. These temples and ruins held vast amounts of treasure and relics. To Jason, the ocean was all the more beautiful and mysterious surrounding Rook Island. The water was crystal clear and there were fallen temples, hidden relics, and a sense of urgency for all the sharks and wildlife that surrounded them.

Standing on the beach, Jason waited for Lewis to show up. The man had contacted him in a hurry, yelling something about a temple he had found near Thurston Town. The temple, Lewis explained, was deep in the ground and hidden behind closed doors. He had also mentioned it was located beneath the dark surface of the ocean. But there were underwater caverns that lead further into the ground to the main temple, possibly ridden with traps from past generations. Lewis told him that there was this relic he needed for a certain mission he had to do. Why he needed a relic for a mission was unknown, so here he was, waiting for the crazy drunkard to show his face.

Jason heard a large armored vehicle park on the beach. The sand sunk in around the large tires. He could hear Lewis laughing as he turned off the radio and the engine. He practically kicked open the front door. Lewis stepped out of the front seat, walking down the beach to meet the other man. Hands were bunched into his pockets, and strange, oddly colored grenades were attached to the straps at his hips. "Brody!" Soft chuckles as the man approached the other, ripping off those grenades and offering them to the warrior. "Th'temple ya'need t'break inta is sea'ed an' undawata'. Oi need ya'ta use 'ese grena'es oi made t'ablow up 'ose dawrs."

Jason took those grenades, looking over their bluish texture with a disapproving frown. "Grenades don't work underwater." He pointed out, thinking that the Molotov flinging man had forgotten how bombs worked. "They only work if you deploy them above ground." All Jason was rewarded with was that familiar, god awful hyena laughter that spouted from Lewis' lips.

"Nah, nah, nah...these are prota'ype, wata'-proof grena'es! Oi mad'em a few weeks ago!" He took one of the grenades from Jason's hands, walking knee-deep into the water and pulling the cord beneath the waves. Jason watched as the seconds tick by. Lewis hadn't seemed to release the grenade. If the damn thing did blow up, Lewis would have his entire arm blown off.

"Lewis! Throw the fucking grenade!" Those crazed eyes flicked to Jason, Lewis let out a loud bark of laughter, standing fully, pulling his arm back and launching it out deeper into the ocean. The small bomb hit the water and exploded. Jason glared at the man, but Lewis snickered.

"Waw'rried oi'd blow meh hand off? HAH!" The man would have continued laughing, if it wasn't for Jason dropping the prototype grenades into the sand in favor of marching over to the man, grabbing a fistful of his obnoxiously red uniform and punching him as hard as he possibly could in the cheek. The Molotov man stumbled back, but despite the pain, continued his laughter. "Alroigh', alroigh'..."

"I'll just use C-4 charges." Jason hissed, pushing past Lewis, and moving towards the water. "I'll get that thing you need and bring it back..." He walked further and further into the waves until he was able to swim. Jason had made a few Deep Dive syringes for this occasion, seeing as he had to dive deep below the ocean surface to get to the water worn temple. As he waded through the waves, Jason took out one of the syringes, jabbing it into his arm. A breath was taken, and Jason dived downwards.

Schools of fish fled out of their groups to get away from him. Jellyfish swam calmly around him, and there were no signs of sharks. he did see a few off in the distance, but they made no moves to come closer. The further down he went, the darker it turned. Jason paused to flick on the waterproof flashlight he had, lighting his way and revealing the temple built inside a wall. Swimming closer, Jason's brow rose at the missing door. He swam through, evading the jagged ends of stone, through a long, dug out tunnel and upwards. He popped to the surface of a large lake, probably all groundwater, inside the large dug out area. Swimming around in a full circle to get a look of the place, Jason then swam towards the shore.

Heaving himself out of the water, Jason took the time to admire the large stone steps that escalated up to the real temple entrance. Jogging up those steps, Jason's wet form approached a large stone door. Hands pressing against it, he knew this was where he had to place the C-4 charges. Just by feeling the door, he knew it was thick, but breaking due to the time it spent down here. One C-4 removed, he stuck it to the door and set a timer. One should be enough to bring down the ancient door, and not the entire temple. His hopes were realized as the C-4 blew up, taking only the door and some of the frame out with it. A crooked grin marred Jason's face, and back up the stairs he went and through the door.

Jason was faced with a long hallway stretching out to a looming cliff, the path between it was broken but vines hung from the ceiling and in between the two platforms. Along the walls were golden frames, looking as though they were here to support the foundation itself. Inside the golden rafters were strange little holes that appeared to have no purpose there. A breath, and Jason ran forward, leaping off the cliff, catching hold of one of the vines, and using the momentum to swing to the other cliffside. His feet touched the ground and Jason snorted. That wasn't going to stop him. Continuing on his way through the long passage, Jason examined even more golden supports, some worn golden steps up to a golden alter. On either side of the golden staircase was nothing but darkness. The pit went down deep and the brunette couldn't see the bottom of it.

Quickly running up the steps to the alter, Jason was greeted to the sight of a small, but pure gold relic with sapphire eyes. It was truly beautiful and it glinted brightly when Jason's flashlight shone on it. The reflected light spanned out, illuminating some of the area around them. Approaching the relic, he looked over the item with an appreciation. Why did Lewis want this? Remembering what happened with the knife and Buck, Jason glanced around for any ropes or spikes that would activate traps. Jason figured he'll just deal with them head on. Opening up his ruck sack, Jason raised his hand in preparation of grabbing the item. He wetted his lips with his tongue, before he swiped the item and stuffed it into his bag.

A loud creaking sound followed. Jason closed the sack and backed up to the stairs. Then, he heard a loud ticking noise. "I think it's time to go..." Jason turned and dashed away from the alter, running down the stairs, skipping a few as he did so. The minute he got to the bottom step, Jason heard the explosion. Turning around, his eyes near popped out of his head at the sight of lava gushing from the broken golden alter, rushing down the stairs after him. "Son of a bitch!" Jason cursed, picking up speed and dashing down the hallway. The lava was gaining fast.

Jason leapt across the pit, grabbing hold of the vine and swinging to the other side. Landing safely, he turned to look behind him, relieved that the lava plummeted into the pit. The relief didn't last long, because a sharp joint entered his arm. A cry of pain, Jason glanced down, only to see a long, thin spike sticking out of his arm. This was starting to remind Jason of Indiana Jones. Taking off again, the brunette heard more spikes go flying from the walls. Another few spikes were lodged into his sides, and two more hit his calf. The ground began to shake, the destruction of the temple had begun. Down the stairs Jason went, diving into the water to escape the traps of the temple. Wading deep in the water, Jason watched the inner temple begin to collapse on itself. Jason pressed another Deep Dive syringe into his arm.

Lewis was still up on the beach the time Jason resurfaced. Taking deep gasping breaths, Jason swam for shore. Lewis ran to the water's edge to help pull the wounded man onto the beach. "Ya'ge' th' re'ic?" There came the question. Jason took his time ripping out each individual spike, before reaching into the ruck sack to retrieve the item, holding it out to the Molotov Man. The relic was snatched from Jason and held up in the sun's rays to be examined. "Yep...this is'i'...mee'ya' back a'th' camp." Jason opened his mouth to yell something, but Lewis was already walking towards the armored van parked in between two trees. Jason stood, taking one of his medical syringes and pressing it into his arm.

With that done, Jason heaved his hurt body up to his feet and ran for the vehicle, climbing into the passenger's seat. Lewis was using a rag to vigorously scrub at the relic, trying to get it as clean as clinically possible. "What the hell Lewis?" Jason grumbled to him quietly, voice still housing pain. "Why did you want me to go into that death trap to get that?" A simple grin was given back to Jason.

"Why...fo'Langi'ly of course...'is'birfday's today, afta' all."


	7. Stealing Back the Hag

White and black streaked fur stretched with the way the tiger moved. A long tail flicked slowly behind the creature as it stalked through the foliage. The scope of the SVD Sniper Rifle followed the large cat's movements. A brunette haired man watched the rare cat move slowly through the trees and bushes of the mountain, unaware of the human's presence. Jason didn't know how much that rare tiger's fur would sell for but they'd better hope there were more than one of them.

The scope trailed down the cat's body, focusing in on the tiger's head. Jason watched the big cat lay in a pile of leaves, looking oh so comfortable in its nest. Jason would have pulled the trigger, ended the cat's life, but the walkie talkie on his waist began to spout a female's voice, sounding panicked and worried. Lowering the scope when he was certain the tiger was staying put, the brunette took the radio and responded. "Who is this? I don't recognize your-"

"It's me...the pilot that helped you get back to the South Island?" Jason felt himself freeze. It was Nyreene, the pilot of the helicopter, HagRaven. Swallowing, Jason ran a hand through his hair and played it cool. "I need your help...awhile back when I was delivering goods to Gaztown, Privateers struck, took my helicopter, the HagRaven, and had taken Phil hostage." Jason listened to the female as she continued. "I need your help getting them back...at least Phil if you can..." Peeking up to take a look at the white tiger, Jason hummed lightly.

"Sure sure...where should we meet?"

"Near the Compound." Was Nyreene's answer.

"I'll meet you there..." Her side went dead and the radio was placed back at his waist. Another glance to the tiger, Jason gave a slight grin when he saw the tiger stand again to reveal two white little cubs stumbling at her feet. Getting out of the area as quickly as possible, Jason slid down the steep side of the cliff towards his vehicle. He supposed he'll let them live a bit longer. Climbing into his chosen jeep, Jason drove back onto the road and headed off into the direction of Hoyt's compound. The Hawaiian music that played made the man grin as he drove along.

The area around the compound was clear. Nyreene was nowhere to be seen, nor another vehicle that showed signs of the woman's presence. Climbing out of his jeep, Jason walked down the small slope of the hill and spotted a very familiar woman leaning against one of the trees, looking as casual and calm as ever. Jason approached her. "Thanks for showing up...they're keeping them both at the hangers where they keep all the airplanes and copters." The female patted a green Technical, her brow raising as she climbed into the front seat.

"We best head out now, before it gets dark...when we get there, the darkness can give us cover while we sneak in." The trip was short. The plane hangers were not so far from the Compound but a quick glance around and Jason looked to Nyreene. "I'll go in first...survey the surroundings. Tell you if I find Phil or the Hag..." The woman gave a soft nod and sunk into the tall bushes. He wouldn't have been able to see her if he didn't look thoroughly.

Jason jogged inside, maneuvering himself around the lone rubble piles and engines and planes. He found Privateers standing around, minding their own business. In his disguise, the other men greeted him like an old friend. To keep up the ruse, he waved to them as he passed, heading further into the hanger.

Then he heard yelling. A glance inside one of the buildings and he found Phil, sitting in a wooden chair with his arms tied behind his back and a stern look on his face. Privateers sat in the room with him, jeering at him and trying to get information out of him. "Where's your boss, eh? The owner of that copter?" Jason would have moved inside, but another Privateer stopped him.

"This area is off limits, for now. There is an interrogation going on at the moment." Jason stepped back and eyed the way Phil kept his face remarkably straight and how quiet he was. Jason watched the Privateer inside pull out a glock and press it to Phil's head.

"Start talking or you'll get shot!" The Privateer snapped, only to receive a crooked grin from the co-pilot.

"Shoot me and you'll never find her..." The Privateer's lips pulled into a snarl, the glock was shoved back into its holster and he stood angrily.

"Someone else interrogate him later. I need a drink..." The angry man pushed past Jason and he figured to continue on and find out where the HagRaven was kept. Passing a spitroast, he stared at the familiar helicopter stashed not too far behind the pit. Privateers were emptying out the contents: crates of food, gallon-sized jugs of clean water, and other needed things for the villagers to survive.

At this time, Jason figured it was time to head back to Nyreene and wait for nighttime to fall. The night would give them cover to sneak in and free Phil, and even the HagRaven if they weren't discovered by that time. Walking back out of the Hanger, Jason moved into the foliage and crouched beside Nyreene. "I found both of them..." He saw her perk up with a grin. "But Phil is in an interrogation room and all the cargo from your HagRaven have been unloaded."

"That's no problem..." Nyreene replied with a wave of her hand. "I can always get more. It is not hard to come by. People I know in Bangkok have tons of donated supplies to give. I can go pick them up again and redistribute them among Rook islands." Jason gave a slight nod and looked up towards the sky.

"It'll be dark very soon now. We just have to be patient." Jason saw the female nod, and comfortably seat herself in the tall bushes.

"Very soon Phil...you will be freed..."

Night fell quickly, the sky turned a dark grey and the stars marred the skies like scars. Nyreene clambered to her feet, but remained crouched in the bushes. Jason gave a nod and Nyreene swore she saw the Warrior attach something to a tree. "Alright..." He kept his voice down. "We'll move on through the perimeter outside the buildings. The we can weave through one of them and get to the building where Phil is being held..." Jason krept out from the bushes with the female directly behind him. Together, they maneuvered through the backside of the buildings, evading patrolling privateers. Sneaking in through a building, the duo moved across the near empty courtyard and into the building where Phil was kept.

The man was still tied in a chair, his nose broken and bleeding, his lip split and the area around his left eye was a bluish-purple. Phil's head rose when he heard someone approaching, and his attitude changed when he saw Jason and Nyreene standing there. "Boss..." His voice was kept quiet, just above a whisper. That frown was replaced with a bloody grin and he watched calmly as Jason moved forward to slice his machete through the thick ropes. The man leaned forward in his seat, grinning widely at the duo. "Knew you wouldn't leave me hanging when I saw ya, kid..." Phil mumbled with good humor to Jason. The Warrior returned the grin.

"Alright...keep your voices down...we need to sneak past the spitroast and get you guys to your HagRaven..." Both heads bobbed, reminding Jason of bobble heads for a brief amount of time.

"Phil..." Nyreene motioned to the taller, older man. "Grab your stuff...the spare keys also..." The co-pilot nodded again and to the table he went, stuffing his pockets with the small items, making sure to snap the key to one of the belt loops.

"All good, Captain..." Phil spoke with a grin. Together, the trio moved out of the building and moved back to the outer edges of the hanger. Silently they stalked, pausing in the shadows when a Privateer passed by.

"Alright...I'll go and distract the Privateers around the roast...wait for my signal, then take back your Helicopter..." Jason, without waiting for a response, moved into view and approached the men talking and eating calmly. "Hey..." Hummed greetings from each man stuffing their face; some had removed helmets and scarves so the items would not get in the way. By the looks of it, they were eating some of those Buffalo that roamed the hills beside the hanger. Taking a seat beside one of the Heavies, part of the Buffalo's leg was offered to him.

"Good job with those traitors, Foster..." A man spoke from across the spittle. "We heard from Sam. All of us were unaware they were even there..." The men on either side of him gave his back a slap, both laughing.

"Good find, good find! All of those other men at the Compound...there are probably jealous." A buck-toothed man laughed. He looked about Grant's age, with buzz-cut sandy blond hair. He wagged a leg bone in his direction. "If Hoyt recognized me, I'd be walking tall too! That man's the business boss! King of the market!" The male was cuffed on the back of the head.

"Oh shut it Wiggins!" The larger man laughed and Jason felt awkward. For murderous thugs, they certainly behaved like they were normal human beings.

Then there was an explosion. The Privateer's heads all jerked behind them, standing up and grabbing their weapons. Jason mimicked them, thinking that placing the C-4 on the tree to use as the distraction was quite a good idea. His eyes flicked to the shadows as some of the Privateers around the pit began to move towards the sound of the explosion. There, he saw Nyreene and Phil go running from the shadows and dashing for the Hag. Jason watched them yank open the doors and climb in front, closing them tight behind them.

"Nyreene!" The sandy haired Privateer had seen them. The other's heads jerked behind them at the name and the sound of helicopter blades slicing through the air as the aircraft was started up. Jason saw them all raise their guns to open fire, but the brunette watched Phil chuck something out the window down at them.

"Smoke grenade!" A heavy yelled just before thick black and grey smoke began pillowing out of the small grenade. Coughing, Jason ran in one direction, getting out of the gas and looking up to the sky. The HagRaven was raising higher and higher into the sky, and he saw Phil give him a salute before off they went.

The smoke eventually cleared, and the Privateers cursed as they watched the helicopter turn to but a speck on the horizon. "Damnit...Hoyt's inner circle's gonna have our asses on a silver platter!" The sandy haired Privateer complained loudly, dropping his gun and sitting heavily by the fire.

"Please..." Another spoke, drawing Jason's attention. "The most that'll happen is getting yelled at...now if it were Snow White that got away..." Jason saw each individual shiver at the very thought. The brunette chose to hang around a while longer, to not appear suspicious. Suddenly appearing and suddenly leaving would definitely make each Privateer know it was his fault. A slab of Buffalo was once again handed to him by one of the Privateers and Jason figured he'll eat and leave.

Besides, he still had to hunt that White Tiger...


	8. Stories and Stones

Footsteps walked calmly down the slope beside the river. The small hill was green and rich with organic life. It was an, overall, peaceful day at Bridge Control. Jason could hear the exotic birds chirping, and the river rushing calmly downstream. But for once, Jason couldn't hear music being blasted over the speakers. There was the occasional spoken word, but, considering that he really didn't see all that many of the pirates here at the camp, most of them unfamiliar, Jason had begun to wonder where they all had went. The only man who _was_ recognizable was Langley, and the pirate was currently sitting in a fold up chair close to the bottom of the slop. One of his nasty cigars hung loosely in his fingers, dangerously close to slipping free.

"Langley?" Eyes fluttered open and drifted over in Jason's direction when he heard the sound of his name. Only then did Jason notice Lassie laying at Langley's side, seeming to be caught in a deep sleep. The German Shepard's leg twitched only slightly, and Jason repressed a grin. He approached and noticed another fold-up chair beside Langley's and his brow rose slowly. "What'cha need me for this time?" The way Langley looked at him told Jason he was already long gone from the drugs.

"S'not a mission this time..." Langley hummed quietly, rolling the cigar in between his fingers. "Just lonesome..." He gestured to the chair beside him. "Gimme some company til the others come back..." Jason's brow rose slowly, disbelievingly. "I swear you'll learn a thing or two."

"You want me to just hang out? I could be going off and ruining more of Hoyt's things. There's tons of things I'd rather-"

"Just for awhile at least?" Langley was quick to interrupt him. "I got some snacks and beer...?" Langley was staring at him with those damned brown eyes. Jason hated the way they could go from cruel and heartless to innocent and curious. It must have been the amount of weed the guy smoked everyday. A loud groan and Jason sat down in the chair beside Langley and snatched up a bottle of the alcohol.

"Fine." Jason popped the bottle to the beer and pressed it to his lips, swallowing the liquid greedily. Silence befell the two of them for awhile and curiosity got the better of him. Finally he asked, "Where'd they go, anyways? The other pirates?" Langley's head rolled to glance at him, lips pursed together in thought.

"All'a them are on this mission...they're cleanin' up all the lil' things you did with the traitors." The cigar to his lips, the pirate inhaled deeply and exhaled the smoke slowly. They twisted into rings before fading away softly. Jason leaned back a bit more, a sour look still on his face. "You cause'a whole lotta trouble, you know~" Langley cooed at the other in a sickly tone.

"I gotta do what I gotta do." Jason grumbled, reaching down to snatch up one of the containers beside the cooler full of beer. Looking over the label, he snorted at the almond logo there. It had been awhile since he ate something. The lid was popped and all Jason felt was disappointment when he saw normal peanuts resting inside. A sigh, and a handful of peanuts were stuffed into his mouth. Another swallow of his beer to wash it all down and a glance was sent back at Langley. He was staring at him all funny with this dazed sort of look in his eye. "What?"

"Ya just...I can't fathom somethin..." Langley began. "Why the hell you'd wanna come to this island? Like...didn't yer mama ever teach ya to not take invitations from strangers?" Jason gaze a snort, thinking that the man was just kidding. But when he saw Langley was still looking at him, as if expecting an answer, he grit his teeth together as he recalled the night he had met Doug. He recalled the drinking, the club, grinding bodies, and the laughing DJ. He remembered the way Riley and Keith got into trouble with a pimp's bitch, the way a fight broke out on the dance floor. The run to the elevator, and the introductions.

The offer to come to this island.

Jason remembered it all. His grip tightened just a tad on the neck of the bottle, fingers threatening to break it. "I could say the same to you! Why did you even come here?" Langley was staring right at the Warrior with an unfocused gaze. Slowly, he blinked and his lips turned downwards into a frown. The cigar was to his lips in an instant, breathing in the fumes deeply. The smoke was released after a minute and Langley chuckled lightly.

"Well...I came her the same way you did..." Jason's brow rose. "I didn't parachute in or anything...I came by boat." The butt of the cigar was tapped against the armrest, some ashes spilling out into the dirt. "But I was taken as a prisoner like you..." Langley even didn't have to look at Jason to know his mouth had fallen open in shock, awe, and possibly horror. "I just got out of it a different way." Langley sat forward in his seat, tapping a wound in his head with his pointer finger. "I was a reject though..."

"Wait. You were on death row...?" Jason couldn't believe what he was hearing! Langley, one of the pirates within Vaas' inner circle didn't even start out as a lowly pirate, but a reject. "Why'd they change their minds-"

"They did after they shot a bullet through my head." Langley glanced at the river, narrowing his eyes when he saw a crocodile settling itself on the dry ground out in the sun. It looked very comfortable there. He heard Lassie growl a warning from his side, but otherwise she made no moves to chase the thing back into the water. "Noticed I wasn't dead, Carlos ran a scan on my head...found out I had my skull fractured with this...strong plate keeping my skull together. I think its bulletproof cuz I'm not dead yet."

"So that's how you lived when I shot you!" Jason snapped, cutting off Langley's story and earning himself a startled look from his outburst. In better humor, he added, "You cheated!" Jason gave half a grin when the thin man gave a chuckle at his words. "So...basically you can't be shot in the head to get killed?" A nod came from Langley, the cigarette was back to his lips, inhaling deeply and releasing the smoke out between his teeth. "How'd you even get that around your skull though?"

"I was in an accident." Langley replied coolly, flipping the cigar between drug-induced fingers. "Fractured my skull...doctors said it was a miracle I survived..." Langley reached over to snatch up the can of almonds, stuffing a handful into his mouth. "But after that, my entire world went to shit...lost my job, lost my house, lost the girlfriend." Jason could hear the man crunching on the almonds in his mouth. His teeth ground into them as he thought over his next words. "Moved in with a friend. Friend took me on a trip and we ended up here..."

"What happened to your friend?" Jason got a look that said he should know what happened to him. Jason chose to take another gulp from the beer to keep himself from having to say anything more. Silence fell between them. The crocodile that had pulled up onto shore returned to the river. "So..." Langley stared at him with a confused look. "How'd you get up to Vaas' inner circle?"

"Worked hard, proved my worth." Langley grumbled between swallows of his beer and Almonds. "Killed a few guys who threatened my life." A crick of a grin formed on Langley's face once all food in his mouth was swallowed. "And took a bullet for the boss..." The look on Langley's face, despite his drugged, dazed look, seemed to be regretful of having protected Vaas. "I was invited to the Compound, to exist in the inner circle and protect the merchanise..." Jason and Langley both seemed to perk at the sound of a jeep pulling to a stop, loud music blaring over the speakers.

"It seems the others are back..." Jason pointed out, wincing at already being able to hear Lewis' obnoxious laughter. Sometimes he just wished the man would have his mouth sewn up. A glance at Langley; the man was still seated in his chair, staring straight ahead at the river with an unrecognizable look on his face. Jason's brow rose slowly, he shook the thinner man by his shoulder to catch his attention once again. "Langley?"

"Gotta admit though..." Langley started, eyes closed as he soaked in the sun's rays. "I made some pretty fuckin' great friends. Was given Lassie." By now, Jason could see Angus at the top of the hill, chatting idly with Randall and Hopper. Jason stood to leave, hearing Langley still talking as though he didn't know Jason was leaving. "I do wonder what happened to Oswald though..." Walking up the slope, Jason was greeted by the trio, their brows raised when they saw him.

"What're you doing here?" Hopper asked, confusion taking over his face and tone. Jason gestured down the slope to Langley, whom was still speaking, but much softer. They all sounded like mumbles now. "Ah...gave him some company?"

"Learn anything new?" Angus asked with a snicker and Jason merely glanced back at the trio with a blank look. Instead of saying anything, Jason passed them, heading for his jeep. No more words were said to any Pirate he passed. With this new information, all Jason could think of was why the other pirates came to this island.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am beginning to run out of ideas for chapters. So bear with me.


	9. Hopping Cassowaries!

A gun was trained upwards towards the sky, and the trigger was being pulled. The birds loitering the skies above Gaztown squawked and fled out of the path of the bullets. Jason's brow rose at the pirate standing in the middle of the road, grinning wickedly as a few of the birds fell to the ground in white and red heaps. Jason didn't know why the man wasn't using the gun in his prosthetic arm, but whatever floated Randall's boat, he guessed.

"Randall!" Jason called to the pirate, drawing his gaze off the birds and towards him. Randall, in his mind, was _indestructible_. He was littered with scars from every known attack that could happen to someone on this island. There were scars from animal attacks, bullets, machete blades, and burns. The scars from it all loitered his torso, his right eye was completely blind, and his left arm now a working weapon. He had ran into Randall only a few times on the North Island. The most memorable time was when he liberated Camp Murder. Randall had been there. The pirate, missing arm and all, had ran a knife through his shoulder before making his escape.

Randall had also been one of the first who accepted him when he first came to Bridge Control. The man would try to include him in their conversations, try to make Hopper relax around him, and he would invite him to parties they held there every night. It was nice, but Jason usually had to miss out on the parties, seeing as he was trying to kill their boss, Hoyt.

"Foster!" Randall laughed and approached him, his one good eye looking him over. "Thanks for showing up! I was in need of your help!" That was when Jason noticed what was sitting at Randall's feet. A fat Basset Hound with a dopey expression on his face sat in the dirt, staring up at Jason with a sort of exhausted look. Jason squatted beside the animal, lazily scratching at his ears. and enjoying the little groans from the dog.

"Yeah....I'm taking a break right now...liberating areas, stalking up on grenades and syringes..." He stood, hands leaving the Hound's ears. He heard the thing whine a bit at the loss, but he settled down quickly when Randall nudged the dog with the toe of his boot. "So what do you need?"

"Honestly, I've been sent on a hunting mission from Rock. He and Carlos cook for the pirates at our camp." A roll of his hand. "He recently has acquired some intelligence. About a certain day in the year. July 6th..." Randall gave a wide grin. "In America, it's National Fried Chicken day!" Randall saw the way Jason's face morphed into a look of confusion. "Rock, in his infinite wisdom, decided that it was a great minor holiday to celebrate. So...we're hunting Cassowaries."

"Cassowaries are definitely not chicken." Jason retorted with a sort of look. It screamed at Randall, telling him silently that he was an idiot. Those big angry birds would be the death of them. If only Randall's idiocy didn't kill the all first.  Randall frowned.

"I know that! I ain't an idiot! I'm just saying! The chickens belong to the villagers and I'm pretty damn sure you don't want us pillaging their dumb as shit towns to take them!" Randall's loud exclamation made a few villagers glance their way and scatter towards their homes and coops. Jason gave a mere roll of his eyes.

"Yeah, I'd prefer you to not steal chickens from them. They need the resources they provide, ya know?" Jason refrained from mentioning he had accidentally ran over a few of the chickens. The damn things always felt like running right in front of his cars. Suicidal little things. "But if things come right down to it, we should just buy the chickens from them." Jason narrowed his eyes slightly when Randall rolled his own hazel orbs. "They need the money too asshole."

"S'not as fun as just takin' them, but fine. I think we can do just that if the birds give us trouble." Randall shoved his hand into his pocket to withdraw his wrinkled map, eyes glancing over the map of South Island. "The closest area Cassowaries inhabit is near Dry Palm Storage Depot." A crooked grin. "Maybe you can liberate it afterwards?"

"Already liberated." Jason replied with a smirk right back at him. "In fact...I only have one more camp to liberate. And it's not your's." Jason saw what was left of Randall's eyebrow raise in a curious fashion, before he chuckled.

"I'm kinda impressed."

"You should be." Jason got into a prideful stance. His arms crossed over his chest and his gaze stared off to the side. The grin on his face said it all, and Randall snorted at him. "So...there a car you have parked nearby or what? Cuz it'll take forever for us to get there if we walk." Jason glanced back over to Randall and his brow rose when he saw Randall grin wickedly.

"Of course I have transport! They're over there." Randall pointed towards the edge of town and Jason eyed the two ATV's sitting dormant beside a fence. Jason diligently followed the pirate and dog as he jogged over towards the ATV's, climbing aboard one of them with Bentley leaping into the space in front of him. The little fat dog nestled close to the pirate, and Randall made an annoyed noise. "I was thinking we could race there. Loser's gotta give the winner half of the cash they own." He watched Jason slide onto the open ATV, reaching to turn on the engine. Both hummed to life and Randall swore he saw a devious glint in Jason's eyes.

"Sounds...sounds like a good plan!" The ATV revved and Jason's ride shot forward, startling Randall.

"Oh you cheater!" Randall called after him, taking off after the Warrior. The duo drove across the dirt roads, evading animals and Rakyat alike. It wouldn't do any good if the Rakyat saw Randall and shot him. The road was bumpy, and both silently decided to evade going off road as well. ATV's were ten times more dangerous off road. A fine spray of water splattered on all sides when the duo sped through a shallow river. The closer and closer they drove towards the Cassowary hunting grounds, the more intense the ride became.

The two became all the more creative. They cut corners, cut through small trees and bushes, and nearly ran over a few animals in the process. In the end, it was Jason whom had pulled ahead and won. The ATV's were parked outside of the camp, Randall keeping his head down and out of sight. Rakyat's would fire immediately at him without thinking a second thought. Randall rose off the ATV and slunk to the trees. 

"You lose." Jason pointed out with a mock grin. "Money." Jason watched Randall reached into his pocket and withdraw a single ten dollar bill. "...really?"

"Only had twenty bucks!" Randall laughed at the look on Jason's face, retrieving the gun from his back and checking the ammo. "Any who, let's get hunting! Packs of Cassowaries should be around everywhere here." Already, the duo could hear the familiar angry noises the Cassowaries made, their loud noises sounding through the thick forest. "Remember, the Cassowaries will attack you the moment they see you! So keep your eyes peeled!"

Through the trees they walked, guns at the ready and fully prepared to take on the usual pack of Cassowaries, which usually ranged from two to five. Cassowaries had the habit of sneaking up on their prey.They were dangerous, cruel, and quite the annoying bastards. Thankfully, they weren't very good at being sneaky, on account of the loud noises they made constantly. Jason finally ducked beside the Basset Hound that had been following them. A Cassowary feather was picked up from the ground and held out to the dog. Bentley came closer to sniff the blue feather.

"Might as well let'im get the scent. Would be easier to find the damn birds." Randall merely shrugged his shoulders as the Basset Hound took in the scent of the feather. He sat back on his bum, dopey eyes staring ahead. Both stared at the dog, before jerking in shock when the thing whined loudly and took off back in the direction they had parked the ATV's. "Jesus Christ, I never knew those fat little things could run that-"

"On your toes." Randall cut Jason off with a snarl. The Warrior glanced towards Randall with a sort of confused look, before he heard it. The Cassowary noises seemed to grow much louder, and much angrier. Jason glanced around the plant-life, nudging Randall in his side when he spotted a Cassowary peeking out from the bushes. That Cassowary was followed by another three, and Jason's breath caught in his throat when three more followed them.

"Holy...Randall?" A glance back, only to see that Randall was having the same problem. They were surrounded on all sides by Cassowary. "Well shit." Jason cursed, raising his gun and aiming at a few of the birds. Randall had done the same thing, an ever so present snarl on his lips. The Cassowaries shook their feathers out and lunged for the two. Jason heard Randall curse himself and pull the trigger to his gun.

The large, colored birds attacked, their colorful wings fluttering impatiently and their vicious beaks stabbing through the air in hopes to plucking out their eyes. The large birds dropped when bullets pierced their flesh, but more continued to show up. Randall made a grab for Jason's shirt, yanking him through the path he had made. Both made a mad dash out of the circle of birds that had surrounded them.

"This was a bad idea!" Randall yelled back at Jason, shoving him in the direction of the nearest tree. "Start climbing!" He spat, dropping his gun in favor of raising his left arm. The iron prosthetic glinted in the sun, and as Jason holstered his gun and began to climb, Randall's gun arm unleashed a hail of bullets at the charging Cassowaries. Jason hauled himself up to a high, thick branch, settling himself on top of it. He idly watched a few Cassowaries fall, only to  move over to allow Randall to climb up beside him.

"We should have just gone to buy the chickens." Jason stated in a matter-of-fact tone, earning himself a glare from Randall. Cassowaries surrounded the base of the tree, screeching up at the two humans every time they shifted. They paced around the tree, angrily and territorially shook out their plumages. They would rather die than allow these two to wander their territory. 

"I know. Why don't you just nag me some more?" Randall nudged his elbow into Jason's side. "You got any grenades? Cuz that'll clear them out long enough for us to make a run back for the ATV's." Randall stared at Jason as he retrieved his grenade pouch, reaching inside and withdrawing a single grenade. He didn't plan on taking out any more. 

"I'll use more of them if I don't get all of them in the first blast." The pin was pulled and the grenade was dropped to the ground. The grenade landed softly on the leaf bed underneath the Cassowaries' feet and both watched with unfamiliar expressions as the bomb ticked away, before exploding. Alarmed screeches and squawks spat from their ugly beaks, while feathers and chunks of bird blew up into their faces. Jason carefully plucked a feather from his hair, letting the bloody blue feather drift back to the ground. Jason cringed, attempting to wipe the red off his uniform.

"Well...that was rather bloody and gruesome." Randall spoke with a crooked grin as he used a red cloth to wipe most of the Cassowary blood from his face. He offered the cloth to Jason, whom took it gratefully. He followed Randall out of the tree, landing on the ground and watching curiously as Randall took up a single leg of one of the blown up Cassowaries. "These things are kinda too big to make fried chicken legs, eh?" The grin was aimed to Jason and the man grumbled quietly beneath his breath.

"Take what you can...then we'll get the rest from the villagers." Jason once again retrieved his gun, holding it tightly in his hands as he waited for Randall to scoop up as much of the Cassowary meat he could. Only when he felt a limb leg of one of the bird's jabbing at the back of his head, he jumped and swatted it out of the pirate's hand. Randall was laughing, allowing the leg of the large bird to be smacked away. "Stop that." Jason barked. "And let's get going before more of those assholes show up!" Air blew out between Randall's lips, stooping down to pick up his fallen gun while swinging the sack of bird over his shoulder.

"You're seriously no fun sometimes. You gotta loosen up!"

"How can I loosen up when your boss is threatening the life of my only living brother?" Jason snapped right back. Randall's brow rose slowly, his eyes following Jason as he stomped away back towards the ATV's. He only followed after him when he heard another Cassowary nearby. Randall made sure to glare at the panting Basset Hound when they returned. Bentley was sitting pretty beside the ATV's, tongue hanging from his open maw and drool dribbling down onto the earthy ground. He was in one piece. Damn it.

"You were absolutely no help." Randall spoke clearly to the dog. "And I still have to pay Hopper for borrowing you." He jabbed lightly at the dog's stomach with the toe of his boot, gently making the dog stand and jump onto the top of the ATV. Jason waited for Randall to climb onto the vehicle before starting up the engine to his.

"We'll go back to Gaztown. Buy some of the chickens there. Take them back to Bridge Control. Celebrate the not so important holiday."

"Hey!" Randall laughed. "If it's got food involvement, Rock's gonna want to celebrate it!"


	10. Morning Routine

The sun rose above the clouds, casting rays of sunshine down on the camp known as Bridge Control. Tropical birds began to sing their songs, acting as alarm clocks for the dozing men and very few women stationed there. Jason never arrived too early in the morning; he was unsure how awful or angry the exhausted pirates would be. It was something he felt like he didn't have to experience. But today, he found himself entering the camp in the early hours of dawn. 

The jeep was parked just barely off the road opposite of the camp, and Jason slid out of the vehicle. The sun was just barely coming up and the air was crisp and cold. The Privateer uniform he wore worked well with keeping his body heat trapped inside. At least that was one good thing that came out of having the wear this skin tight abomination. He stepped around a lazy bunch of snoozing dogs, and walked into the camp. What he found made him pause.

A good portion of men were awake, lounging around and sipping at mugs. The smell of coffee and chocolate hung about the air, rich and definitely heavenly. A turn of his head, and he spotted Angus being tailed by a woman barely clad in any clothes. _What a brave, brave woman._ Her skin was the rich color of milk chocolate, her hair resembled the color of coconut shells, and her lips were lush and plump with smeared gloss covering them. Her thin, dainty little hands followed the Englishman as he stepped up the slope and towards the camp.

"C'mon sweetie." She cooed in her pretty, exotic accent; a light begging tone was laced in with her words as she tailed Angus. "I remember servicing your lovely friends, but you and that thin man are the only ones I missed. Just allow me to do so~ You're such a handsome man with a lovely accent-"

"Listen doll." Angus turned to the woman, crossing tanned arms over his chest. "This Asexual pirate does not want your booty. Or any booty for that matter." Jason had to slap a hand over his mouth to cover the loud snort of laughter that bubbled out from his lips. The woman had a very confused look on her face, at first, but she didn't seem all that concerned when she spotted Langley, and all but skipped after him.

Langley was sitting on a fold up chair, cradling a lightly stained mug in between his fingers. Dark bags hung under his eyes, and the thick layer of stubble seemed far more prominent then it had been the last time he had seen him. Another snort of laughter when he saw the way Langley shooed the woman away when she approached. He definitely wasn't in the mood to be serviced. Although, the woman seemed pleased when he was motioned over and she laid down on a thick blanket beside a man already covered with women. Upon closer inspection, Jason recognized the pirate as none other than Lewis. The man seemed pleased to find another woman curling beneath his arm.

"G'morning..." Langley yawned when he finally spotted Jason. "You're here early...like...really early...what time is it?" Langley leaned backwards in his seat, reaching a solitary hand out to grasp blindly for a clock on the table behind him. His hand closed around the item and the chair was rocked back onto all fours. "...5:30...jesus christ, Jason. You're never here this early. What's the special occasion?"

"Just thought I'd come over...spend the morning here? It's still a few days until the poker game at Hoyt's...and I've already dealt with all of Hoyt's things. So I'm just lounging around until then..." His shoulders rolled in a lazy shrug. "Most camps have been liberated...considering Hoyt would get suspicious if I didn't liberate your camp." Langley made a soft noise of acknowledgement at his words, mug back up to his lips.

"Some camps around here? Or some a little further away?" Angus had come to a stop beside Jason, an orange and green flower mug in his grip. Jason's gaze switched to Angus when he approached and a second mug was held out to Jason. He didn't drink coffee, but he took it so not to be considered rude. Jason perked and grinned when, finally, the burning scent of roasting animal reached his nostrils, and Jason breathed it in with a sigh of relief.

"I haven't done Break Point Docks." Jason pointed out; the smell of the coffee in his grip reminded him of home. The scent was just the same as the drink his mother would sip at in the morning. "Planned on doing the camp the day of the poker game." His fingers drummed lazily against the mug and Jason gave a small grin. "Yet...who knows how long it'll be until the Privateers try retaking the camps?"

"Took us a few hours after you took Camp Murder..." Langley remarked with a grin. "The Privateers are usually quicker than us, but when it comes to the camps, they don't take it all that seriously." His mug was set aside and a cheeky grin was given. "So it might be either longer or shorter. Or they might start when you're dead or gone. The Rakyat ain't Jason Brody. They fumble around a lot more." Angus nodded along with Langley's words, already taking his mug and heading off to find someone else to speak to. Langley waved Angus off and his gaze then focused to Hopper as the ginger-haired man stumbled closer next.

"G'mornin..." Hopper cooed quietly, and Jason was shocked to hear Hopper speak with such a calm sounding voice for once. Normally, Hopper was louder and a lot more anxious sounding when Jason was hanging around. He took the mug Langley offered and brought the hot glass up to his lips to drink down the warm, dark liquid. "G'mornin' Jason." Hopper greeted and Jason gave a nod of acknowledgement. "Shockin' to see you here." Hopper's brow rose at him and the man smiled at the ginger-haired male. "You doin' something for one of us or-?"

"Just here to see how you lazy fucks get started in the morning." Jason grinned even wider at the glare Hopper gave him and the loud yawn from Randall drew their gazes over to the exhausted man. The scarred man rolled over to his side, and Jason eyed each individual scar placed along the pirate's back. It was then he wondered why Randall was shirtless when it was freezing outside. The half-blind male rolled onto his stomach, hefting large arms underneath his body and pushing himself up onto his knees. Another mighty yawn left his lips, and Randall heaved himself up to his feet and trudged wearily past the trio towards Carlos, whom was cooking at the spittle.

"Lazy fuckers? I'm not lazy." Hopper pointed out, scratching at his messy ginger hair with a crinkle in his nose. "I've been doing shit since I first came to these islands! I work harder than a lot of people here!" Mug up to his lips; there were some lazy slurping noises as he let the warm liquid pour down his gullet. "Shit...I may have taken over someone else's life, but I mean-"

"Wait...what?" That had caught Jason's attention, and a brown brow raised higher than the other. "You took on someone else's life? What...your real name isn't Hopper?" The ginger snorted.

"No? Hopper is an alias. Also the name of the man I killed." Jason looked at Langley, silently asking him if this was true. The man seemed all too content sipping at his own coffee, so he couldn't really see the look Jason was giving him. But, if he did see the look, he was sure Langley would agree. "Randall helped me take on the alias. I was never even supposed to be here." Hopper shrugged. "Do you wanna hear why I came here or-?"

"Yeah!" Jason yelled, but quieted down when a few pirates snapped at him to shut up and speak quieter. Langley and Hopper both laughed at Jason's enthusiasm, and Hopper set his mug aside. "I mean...if it's really okay to know?"

"Some pirates are more open than others." Langley put in with a crooked grin. "Hopper's sorta one of them." Hopper elbowed Langley in the side and the thin man fell silent, hands raised in a mock rendition of surrender.

"I was supposed to be a Privateer." Hopper said in a tone that made Jason look even more curious. "Although, there was a Rakyat attack there at the briefing ceremony." He kicked at the dirt with a booted foot. "I was one of three to survive, and Hoyt Volker never got to meet us." A large man passed Hopper and stopped beside Lewis. The scarred up back was all Jason needed to see to know that it was Randall. "The other two fled the island, and I moved on to North Island." Randall was then leaning over the shorter man, an exhausted look still on his face. And yet he was lazily smiling, seeming proud of himself.

"And he met me." Randall hummed, but in his mug wasn't coffee. Jason knew that scent. It was chocolatey, and steam trickled up from the rim. "I found him and helped him disguise as one of the pirates. We offed the guy and had Hopper switch with him." A hand rested on Hopper's ginger locks and Randall ruffled them with a sneer.

"So...uh...what's your real name?" Jason asked, but Hopper shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.

"I"ve been using the name Hopper so long, I've completely forgotten." Hopper scratched at his chin, thinking it over. "Pretty sure it started with a M though." Another lazy shrug and his mug was emptied into his stomach. "Jason...you've been standing there like that since you got here. You've got a mug of coffee and you haven't even drank from it."

"I'm not much of a coffee person. Angus offered it but I won't drink it." Jason glanced up, seeing Randall grinning ear to ear.

"I know that. S'why I drink the hot chocolate we get at General stores." He gestured to his own mug, and Hopper leaned forward to take the mug from Jason's hand, pouring the contents into his. The cup was set aside, and Jason's eyes glanced up to Randall. His look was curious, and he silently hoped he could get another story out of these pirates.

"How'd you get here?"

"Nuh, uh." Randall shook his head ad gave a loud laugh. "I ain't an open book." A ringing bell came from the spittle's, and they knew it was a sign that food was ready to be served. "And it ain't much of a story..." Randall watched Hopper and Langley both scramble off towards the fire pits, wanting to be fed. "Besides...my tales of the battles I've fought are far more exciting." Jason followed behind Randall as the pair moved towards the spittle. The dogs were already crowding around at everyone's feet, begging for their own share.

"Foster!" Carlos yelled in greeting. Wondering why Carlos used his alias name, his eyes flicked to the side curiously and he spotted McDuvan talking with Lewis, whom was still laying on the ground covered in woman. Lewis was not much to look at; why the hell were women always hanging over him? When the smell of food reached the girl's noses however, they abandoned the man in favor of filling their bellies. A tray was held out to him, a large slab of what appeared to be buffalo laying on it. Jason took the tray from Carlos with a thankful smile and he stepped away.

When he found Langley, he was sitting with Randall and Hopper. Beside Hopper was Angus. The Englishman was constantly poking and prodding at Lewis, whom was still laying down, but at least the Molotov man was awake now. Lewis now had his own mug, but the contents were unknown due to the smell he couldn't sniff. And Jason was at least pleased to see he was wearing clothes beneath that blanket. Looking around the small circle, Jason bristled slightly about how real these people looked. Instead of a loud bunch of murderous, party-animal pirates, he saw normalcy; he saw a family, and the humorous thought of Rock and Clause being the parents made him laugh.

"Come sit with us you loser!" Randall called to him and Jason trotted closer. Maybe he should come visit more in the morning. If only to feel normal.


	11. Protecting Inventory

The shrill slicing of helicopter blades through the air made Jason all the more curious. It was strange to hear the sound so far out in the middle of the jungle, so it drew his attention like a cat with string. The noise wasn't foreign; he had discovered the Hanger a long time ago, both at different time. Leaving the dead, skinned goat where it had been, Jason followed the noise, listening as it grew louder the closer he approached. If it were mere Privateers, he would have nothing to worry about. He was still dressed in his Privateer garb, so he had no worries of getting shot at. But, if it happened to be Privateers, what were they doing so far out in the jungle? Why were they here? 

Pushing out through the trees, Jason found himself staring out over long, hilly mountainsides covered with soft-looking green grass. Flowers blossomed in bright colors of reds and yellows, spanding out around the hills. At the base of the mountain, a familiar helicopter lay in wait; the blades of the chopper were in motion and were currently slowing down. Taking a few steps towards the cliff's edge, Jason spotted Phil first. He wasn't hard to miss on account of his large shoulders, thick arms, and the bushy, curly beard growing on his chin. The man was toting large boxes out of of the copter and towards a dark Technical. They were being strapped down with thick belts to keep them stationary. Next he spotted Nyreene; the brilliant pilot was leaning against the chopper, holding a small board and reading something off to a third, unknown male.

"Then you head to Gaztown..." Jason could just barely hear her speaking over the sound of the blades. "There you wanna..." Her voice trailed off again under the roar of the chopper, and Jason finally decided he should head down there to find out who on Earth that unknown male was. Taking a running jump off the cliff, Jason let himself fall for only a second before stretching out his arms to let the wind carry him safely to the ground. The string to his parachute was pulled and Jason was pleased to have landed on his feet rather than stumbling to his hands and knees. His landing caught their attention and Nyreene grinned wide at the very sight of him.

"Jason!" She called out, approaching the Warrior with sparkling eyes and a cheerful attitude. She looked livelier than ever. "Good thing you arrived when you did!" She beckoned to the man she had been talking to and now Jason could get a much better look at him. He was short and thin with blond hair and brown eyes, yet the kid was still taller than Nyreene. Thick-rimmed glasses sat delicately on the end of his freckled nose and his posture explained he certainly wasn't ready to deal with this island. "This is Nathaniel! The newest member of the HagRaven!" A dainty hand was held out towards Jason, and the brunette took it with a firm shake.

"Name's Jason. I-"

"You're the guy who's destroying half of Hoyt's empire." Nathaniel said in a matter-of-fact tone. Their hands lowered from the other and Nathaniel gave him a thumb's up. "Making our work tons easier. There are less Privateers roaming around and they can barely keep up with us now." Jason could hear Phil's amused chuckling from where he stood by the Technical, but Nyreene cut in with her own laugh of joy.

"Jason. Today, Nathaniel has to travel around the island and deliver the goods to every large village. Would you be a dear and help him out?" She leaned closer, cupping her hands by her own to whisper quietly in his ear, "He's still pretty jumpy about the Privateers." A snort from Jason, a tiny, yet quiet complaint from Nathaniel. Obviously, Nyreene wasn't quiet enough. Jason grinned at the kid's frown, and gave a nod of his own. It wasn't like he had any plans currently.

"Sure. All I was doing was hunting. I can help him out." Jason gave a tired grin at the trio, and Phil leaned casually against the Technical, large arms crossing over his thick chest.

"The Technical is all packed. Just drive him around and help deliver the items. If Privateers show up, kill them and protect Nathaniel. We do not want a dead rookie on our hands." Nathaniel gave Phil a rather alarmed look, and the large man merely laughed it off. Phil pat the Technical, a silent signal for them to get going. Jason obliged, jogging towards the Technical and climbing into the passenger's seat. He was suspecting that Nathaniel would want to be behind the wheel. The blond took his seat and started up the car. His form was slightly hunched forward, and he was pale. He didn't look ready.

"I'm sure nothing will go wrong." Jason told him in a tone that made the blond look at him warily. Phil stepped out of the way of the Technical and off they drove down the hill towards the road. Off road was bumpy, littered with rocks and roots that made the Technical bounced and rock slowly as Nathaniel took his time. "Besides. I'm here. I'll protect ya from the big, bad Privateers!" Nathaniel snorted at Jason's enthusiasm. The Technical pulled out onto the road and the rough jerks of the vehicle stopped near immediately as the road became smoother and straightened itself out.

The drive was easy; Jason leaned back into the cushions, craning his head around to look for any signs of straggling Privateers. He didn't expect to see any of them, since this area of the island was well taken care of. Although, it was nice to see Dingos loitering around. Their fur was ruffled and matted, but they seemed excited to give chase after the Technical for at least a mile. "So...uh...why are you helping me out?" Nathaniel's voice drew Jason's eyes off the road and scenery to the blond's pale face. "We don't even know each other...?"

"I know Nyreene and Phil. Those two helped me out a few times, so I figured I should return the favor." Jason idly removed one of his weapons, his Ace, looking it over to make sure it was ready to be used. The painted colors gleamed in the light, and Jason pat it affectionately. "There are still good people in the world, even on fucked up islands like this one." Thurston Town was slowly coming up, and Jason remembered how many Privateers hung out around that certain area. That made him grow wary. "Just be careful in Thurston Town. Privateers are everywhere there."

"Aren't those guys friendly usually?" Nathaniel asked Jason with a raised brow. His dorky, thick-rimmed glasses slid down his nose and Nathaniel pushed them back up without missing a beat. "Miss Nyreene told me they're the ' _lazy fucks who don't give a shit_ '." Jason barked out a laugh, having to cover his mouth from letting the loud chuckles alert anyone inside the gate; that laugh made Nathaniel jump a bit, but he returned the smile that the Warrior gave him. The Technical stopped with a tiny screech of its breaks, and the duo climbed from the car. "Uh...gun out and ready in case?" Jason gave a nod, and Nathaniel moved to the back, carefully removing the smallest crate and hauling it into his arms.

"I'm right behind you." Jason told him, following Nathaniel through the open slot of the fence and towards the general store; it was small and just on the edge of the equally small town. Privateers eyed them briefly, before turning their gaze away, boredly staring at the sky and at other men standing around. The villagers in this town were quiet, either working to please the men or silently begging for spare change. Jason held the door open for Nathaniel and the man stepped inside, carrying the crate across the store and setting it up on the counter. The woman smiled sweetly, gave a soft nod of thanks, and stepped towards a safe.

"Oh thank you. We were running out of supplies. Those men and their need to feel superior." She thanked the duo as she entered the code and took out the payment. The safe was closed and the money was passed over to Nathaniel. Nathaniel tucked the money away into a pocket on the inside of his coat. "Good luck to you two. Don't let any of those Privateers out there boss you around. " Nathaniel smiled and stepped out of the general store, Jason following behind him with a nod of his own to the owner. The Privateers still did nothing as they moved back towards the fence and Jason realized how lazy these fuckers really were.

Jason strolled after Nathaniel back to the car, sitting there in the front seat and waiting for Nathaniel to finish checking off things on the little board he held. Nathaniel finally took his seat, tucking the board in the backseat and turning the keys in the ignition to start the engine. The headlights flicked on; _was it already beginning to grow so late in the night?_ He backed away from the gate, and Jason was glad to ride with someone who didn't drive crazily on the road. Unlike the pirates of Bridge Control, Nathaniel drove like any normal person would. It was nice to finally have a change in pace.

The drive to Gaztown was long and tedious. The island was just so large with so many obnoxious hills that led them in every which direction. Not to mention, the Warrior had only been on this island for two weeks and he still hasn't been everywhere possible. Night was growing nearer,  Jason and Nathaniel had both made alarmed noises when the shadowed forms of Cassowaries ran up alongside the Technical, screeching at them in a territorial, back-off sorta fashion. Jason growled right back at them, flashing his light at them to illuminate their obnoxious blue feathers. Cassowaries were such horrible birds and the living hell beasts of Rook Islands.

"Do...do you hear that?" Nathaniel glanced at Jason with a curious look, and Jason had to strain his ears to hear. He could hear tires driving over the dirt of the road from behind them. It was quiet, but he did hear it. Jason swiveled around in his seat to stare back at the road behind them. This area was well protected by the Rakyat, so he figured it was a small group of Rakyat in a vehicle behind them. He was horribly wrong.

Privateers were advancing towards their own Technical, and Jason noticed the turret locked into the back.

"Shit! Drive faster Nathaniel!" Jason replaced his Ace with his bow, reaching for his quiver and unbuckling his seatbelt. The Technical sped up, tires grinding dirt and rocks past them. Jason carefully crawled over the crates, bracing himself on one of them and securing himself down. He didn't feel like getting flung out. "Pass me that arrow with the yellow tip!" He ordered Nathaniel, and, with one hand on the wheel, Nathaniel reached across the seat to grab the arrow with precise fingers. It was offered it to the warrior and Jason took the arrow, grinning gleefully.

"Pull over!" The Privateer behind the turret snapped at them. The gun was firing around them, purposefully missing. They wanted the cargo undamaged. And possibly the driver of said vehicle. Why Hoyt didn't want Nyreene around was a complete mystery to Jason. "Or we'll blow your fuckin' tires out!" At the call, Nathaniel pressed his foot further into the pedal and the Technical picked up speed. The armed jeep sped up in an attempt to keep behind them, and Jason knew he had to protect the cargo, and the man behind the wheel. He could already see Nathaniel hyperventilating behind the wheel Jason drew the arrow back, aiming right at the hood of the jeep behind them.

"How is that gonna stop them?!" Nathaniel yelled, swerving the Technical around a corner and the jeep was quick enough to keep up. The man behind the turret pressed the trigger harder, aiming the turret with better precision. The heavy pellets hit the Technical dead on, indenting into the hard metal of the vehicle. Thankfully, they missed the tires and the oil tank. Dying in a firey explosion was not the way Jason expected to die. "They won't even damage it!"

"It will actually! Because they're explosive!" The arrow was released; the armed arrow flew from the drawstring, whistling through the air and nearly embedding itself into the hood of the jeep. The following explosion caught trees aflame and shrapnel came flying out in all directions. They were both lucky enough that it missed them. Jason let himself collapse back in his seat, laughing joyfully while Nathaniel slowly calmed down from the encounter. "You alright?" A hand was reached over to lay on the younger man's shoulder, and Nathaniel swallowed thickly and glanced at Jason from the corner of his eye.

"F-fine...just...that was pretty intense..." A familiar road. Jason could recognize it anywhere. Gaztown was just as he remembered; filled with birds and villagers alike. The sky had reached a darkened peak, and stars began to litter themselves across the sky. Villagers stretched across the town, but seemed to flock towards the Technical when it pulled to a stop. The knife-throwing man was the first to reach their vehicle. Jason sat back, tending to what wounds he had as Nathaniel climbed from the Technical and began handing out crates to be evenly distributed. They took them eagerly, insisting that Nathaniel take their payments that seemed far more than normal. The villagers thanked him profusely, and with a wave and a smile, Nathaniel climbed back into the Technical, and pulled out of the village.

"We done?" Jason asked.

"Yeah...we're done." Nathaniel leaned forward to switch the radio station to a few beats that flowed more sweetly than the earlier tune. The crisp night air calmed them of their recent worries. Jason let out a content sigh, leaning back into the passenger's seat with a smile. "Thanks for the help man. I appreciate it."

"No problem. Just killing time until the poker game..." Jason readjusted the collar of the obnoxious yellow and black jacket and he glanced to Nathaniel. "So...why'd you join the HagRaven?"

"I uh...wanted to disobey my parents mainly. They told me I couldn't get a job in life. Shit got a little crazy my first day. Hoyt's guys attacked us, and I had to...well kill people to stay alive. That was a new experience..." Jason nodded. He remembered how he felt when he had first killed someone. It was a pirate; the man had jumped him, ready to stab him through his throat. But Jason had turned the tables on him and stabbed him first. That was back when he had first escaped Vaas' camp for the very first time. "What was weird though, was that it felt...well...right...I think I'm turning into a serial killer, Jason."

"Everyone on these islands have killed at least one person. We're all killers here." Jason spoke, watching the way Nathaniel paled even more. "But that doesn't mean we can't be redeemed. I planned on staying here with Citra, but now that I know my brother is alive, my younger brother, I really just want to get him home. I can't let the others leave without him." Jason let out a soft chuckle. "I still feel like I'm shitting all over Citra's plans though. The woman helped me become who I am..."

"Did she really?" Nathaniel's question made Jason perk up slightly; confusion made him grow wary. "Or is she just using you until she's through with you? Cuz if you think about it. She's a powerful woman with an entire army at her disposal." Jason's brow rose slowly. "Now, I'm not saying she's bad, but she's probably using sex to make people believe a lot of her bullshit." Jason frowned. "I'm just saying. If you still want to worship her, go ahead. Don't let me stop you." A wary smile was given. Nathaniel didn't want him blowing up with anger.

"I'll keep that in mind." Jason informed with a sort of crooked smile. What he had said did make a little sense. To become a warrior, a true warrior, Jason had fought the Monster in the story, and woke up with Citra on top of him. Maybe she was using sex to keep her men in line? The remainder of the journey was swift, and rarely any casualties as they drove past the Outpost Jason had yet to liberate. There was anger, but they got away before any true harm could come upon either of them. The HagRaven was still parked in the same place out in the middle of nowhere. The blades had finally stopped, and it appeared Nyreene and Phil were sitting in net, fold-up chairs with drinks in their hands and a radio playing in between them. Guns rested at their sides, ready to be used if a stray predator came their way. As they dismounted the Technical, Jason saw dead Privateer bodies strewn about the ground with bullets in their bodies. "Do you guys kill Rakyat too?"

"Oh you're back!" Nyreene cooed from her place, sitting up fully in her seat to smile warmly at the Warrior and Nathaniel both. "That's normally confidential, but no we don't. Rakyat don't pester us like Privateers do." Standing from her seat, she moved closer towards the two, smiling widely as he passed the woman over to her. "Good job, my friend. You shall make an excellent member of our team! And thank you Jason for protecting him." The pilot gave him a saucy wink, and Jason grinned with pride.

"No problem. It's nice to have something to do before the game. Good luck you guys. I've gotta get back to hunting. Extra cash is always a necesity." Nyreene smiled a tad wider, hand raising in goodbye as Jason headed back towards the Technical. Phil set his drink aside, watching as Nathaniel happily sat down in a third net chair, breathing out a relieved sigh.

"Can I take this?"

"Go for it." Phil laughed. "We stole it off a group of Privateers anyways."


	12. On Repeat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look back into how Jason got Langley on his side.

Hoyt's island may have been small, but never had Jason seen so many men, so many enemies in one place at once. The Warrior had barely managed to obtain the uniform and he calmly got to witness Hoyt's welcoming speech to the new recruits first hand. Now, all he had to do was get on the big bad boss' good side and kill him.

When he had left the cave, a Privateer had approached him on the beach and told Jason to follow him to a nearby camp. As they approached, no one turned any guns on him, hell, he couldn't really see anyone else here. Jason didn't know whether or not this would be easy to liberate...there were always men around every corner here in this new, unfamiliar territory. All he knew is that this outpost he was taken to was called Bridge Control.

"Do you think you're up to the challenge, Foster?" The other Privateer's brow rose at Jason, the disguised male giving him a confused look as they passed by a group people dressed in red. "You weren't even listening." The man growled the words and shook his head at him. "You see those fucking pirates there? In the red shirts and camo pants?" He raised his hand and pointed to the bunch of pirates, which was the blotch of red Jason had seen earlier. "You see...after Brody killed Vaas, Hoyt took it upon himself to ah...take in Vaas' best men..." He once again gestured to the group. "There's this one..who’s thin as hell..." The Privateer shook his head in an annoyed, angry way.

"That fucker collects old shit...like...relics and fuck is it annoying!" He lowered his hand, only to angrily knock something off a fold-up table as they continued to walk. They were heading in the direction of the building located in the center of the base. "And when the guy's doing his work, those other pirate fucks go and try to gather more of those ugly things for him..." Jason was boredly listening to this Privateer's rant, proud of himself that he managed to keep a slightly interested look on his face. "I don't want him seeing you swipe them..." _Wait what?_ "...I'll get him to come down, then you just take them and burn them. And if he catches you..." Jason's eyes caught the name stitched onto the name plate. McDuvan. "Don't you dare open your mouth..."

"First of all, why the hell do you want them destroyed? They're relics...they can hold supernatural powers and curse the one who damned them." That earned Jason a strange look from the man. "I'm just saying...” Jason sighed. “Yeah I'll do it..." The look turned to a smirk. 

"Wait right fuckin' here." The Privateer went stalking away then, and Jason chose to keep his eyes off the small group of pirates in case he had ran into them before. Not too long later, down the top floor stairs came McDuvan and-

Jason's eyes widened and his gaze immediately went to the ground. What?! Jason thought he fucking killed him! The warrior recalled putting a bullet through the man's head when he was at the compound going after Vaas. His eyes flicked up briefly for another look. Shit. It really was him. 

Langley was alive. 

The usually drugged pirate was still dressed in his usual attire, except for the added bandages around his skull where Jason had shot a bullet through. There was a sense of pride there. The man seemed to be having difficulties walking around; one hand was grasped tightly to the railing as he followed after McDuvan. And in his other hand, Langley held something familiar. Jason unfortunately couldn't steal the relic from the pirate's hand. It was a Heron relic Langley held and the eyes were a strange jade colored stone. McDuvan's dark eyes met his and Jason grumbled something beneath his breath, going forward and keeping silent as he walked.

Jason moved up the stairs and paused as a familiar German Shepard trotted right past him, a bloody bone clamped between her teeth. She paid him no mind, but she stopped briefly to smell at the air, before picking up her pace to follow her master when Langley whistled for her. Across the platform, and Jason pushed open the door and was greeted to the sight of seven relics aligned neatly on a table in the middle of the room. A low whistle and Jason approached, his hand closed around a Spider relic and he couldn't help but admire the beauty and craftsmanship. "Christ..." The other relics consisted of another Heron, two Sharks, two Spiders, including the one he was holding, and two Boars. Jason placed the relic back on the table, making a light face and going into his thoughts. Usually, the relics he had found contained golden eyes, not these strange colors of reds and blues.

Jason finally took up one in each hand again, glancing between the two. He'd better hurry. He didn't know how much time he had. The two relics were stuffed into his bag and just as he reached for another, he felt the cold steel of a machete blade press against the side of his throat. "Well now..." Langley's strange sounding voice filled his ears. "Ya know...usually people who try ta steal these beauties get killed inna instant." Jason could hear the man grin. "But I don't do that until I see the man's face. I like to watch them die." A hand caught his hair and yanked his head backwards. A dark chuckle. "Well...if it aint Jason bloody Brody himself..."

_ Shit...shit, shit, shit. _

"Ya know...I never really repaid ya for that bullet wound ya tried to put through my head..." A small, round bullet casing was balanced on top of Jason's forehead; the Warrior could see a shit eating grin on Langley's face. "Be a dear and set my fucking relics back in their place..." Jason's set to obey instantly, setting the two relics back on the table beside the others. "Now...tell me...who put you up to this? If you be truthful, I'll consider not ending your life." A swallow, the muscle against the machete flexed a bit with the movement and the blade dug just barely into his neck. "Come now...surely you would know..."

"McDuvan..." He said the name bluntly and a tad bit too quickly. Jason may have been a snitch here, but he wasn't at all scared of what the man threatened to do to him if he told the truth. All Jason cared about was his own life. He had a mission to do. He had a crazed businessman to kill. The hand released his hair and Jason's head snapped forward; the bullet jumped off his forehead and landed on the floor a ways away. 

"I shoulda known..." He heard Langley hum to himself. When Jason turned his head in Langley's direction, he saw the pirate idly tapping the machete he held against his own chin. The tap was light enough to not draw blood. "Fucker always hated the relics..." The machete was sheathed, his shoulders popped, and Langley turned to face him, wearing that same damned grin.

"Listen buttercup..." Langley started, addressing Jason. "I won't kill you...nor tell Hoyt that I had seen you." A light sigh of relief. "But first...you gotta help me with somethin..." Jason made a face at the other, but nodded. So much for trying to gain the trust of McDuvan. Although, he supposed a pirate he shot point blank in the brain and lived to tell the tale would have been a better person to help him. He grit his teeth together, grumbling softly. 

"Fine...fine...what do you have in mind...?" The growing grin on Langley's face did not make Jason feel at all comfortable with the situation.

"McDuvan hates my relics...and who knows how many other old historic monuments of these islands..." Jason watched, with a glare, as Langley strut back and forth in the room, thinking over his diabolical plan in his head. He hadn't the foggiest idea as to why Langley didn't just storm outside right now and murder the man for trying to get rid of his relics. Perhaps...he wanted him to learn a lesson? "Why don't we treat him...first hand at seeing the beauty of fallen monuments of history?" Jason saw the pirate pat his pants' pocket and move towards the door.

Upon opening, the demon dog, Lassie, all but launched herself inside, snuffling at the ground and demanding why she hadn't been allowed inside immediately. She paid no mind to the Warrior, she was too busy barking and howling. Langley's hand closed around her muzzle, keeping her jaws together. "Listen darlin Lassie..." The pirate was cooing at the dog. "I need you to do something for me, lovey..." Her ears perked in a way that almost made Jason think she was actually listening to what her master had to say. "I'm gonna need ya to take that god awful watch McDuvan always has on him...follow the scent me and...Foster leaves..." The temporary name caused Jason to stare at the usually drugged pirate strangely.

Langley's hands were removed from Lassie's muzzle, moving to an alarm clock on the shelf and setting it to a certain time. "When this goes off, Lassie darlin...be the little thief you are." He placed the clock on the table and scooped up all his relics, shoving them into his duffel bag and heading for the door. "Let's hurry, _Foster_." Emphasis was put on the name and Jason shook his head at the man and followed. What had he just gotten himself into?

The brunette jogged after the mohawked man, keeping up with him as they headed for the road. He didn't bother to make eye-contact with the few pirates that let their gazes wander over to the pair. None of them spoke. McDuvan was trying to get three flea-bitten mutts off him, a Greyhound, a Pitbull, and a Bulldog. They appeared to be distracting him, although the plate of food in his hands suggested they just wanted to steal it. Langley led them to a Jeep, the thin man sliding in and patting the passenger seat with a bandaged hand. Begrudgingly, Jason climbed into the lumpy, uncomfortable seat. "Just so you know, Buttercup...I'm a terrible driver."

"Wait, wha-" The question of alarm was cut short as Langley's foot smashed into the gas pedal, rocketing the jeep forward faster than Jason's ever seen. The brunette's hands immediately went to the railing, holding tightly as Langley drove the jeep harshly over the rough terrain. He swore to whatever entity existed that they were sent airborne upon going over a few large hills. "Slow down!" Jason hissed at the pirate, whom seemed calm as he sped along. Still, that same sly grin was across his face. 

"Now, now...don't distract the driver." Langley chastised, pulling his eyes off the road to stare at Jason...just as they drove off the side of a tall cliff. Now, Jason has faced many things on these god-forsaken islands. Homicidal Pirates, animal-attacks, drugs, fires raging around him. But there was still one thing he couldn't ever get over. Suddenly finding himself fighting to not fall over the edge of a cliff. The Wingsuit that Willus had given him had greatly helped him with this constant fear, but right at this moment, he and the crazed drug-addicted pirate were careening towards the ground. The wheels caught on branches of trees, snapping them off cleanly. There was a loud crash. Both men were jerked hard into their seats. Jason saw smoke begin to pillow out of the engine, but Langley didn't stop. the wheels continued to turn as the Jeep forced its way up another mountain.

Only when the Jeep came to a stop did Jason release his held in breath. 

Langley turned the vehicle off, slithering out of the seat and tapping Jason on the side of his head. "Comin' Foster?" That same emphasized name made Jason will himself to get out of the Jeep. Ahead of them was a large batch of plant-life and upon closer inspection, he could see a hole in the ground leading into a dark cavern. 

"Huh..." Jason retrieved his map from his rucksack and gave it a once-over. They weren't all that far from Bridge Control and as he stuffed it back into his bag, he glanced to the pirate. Langley was leaning against the Jeep with a cigar in his mouth. The pirate didn’t acknowledge the disguised man. His eyes were glued to the watch on his arm. He was muttering to himself. Whatever he was saying was lost in the wind. 

"How'd you survive?" Jason was blunt, drawing Langley's eyes to his. "I shot you right in the skull and here you are...moving, talking, smoking." The pirate shook his head at the other, tapping his own temple with a finger. 

"Now if I tell you that..." He bit into his cigar, making sure to keep it caught between his teeth, "...what fun would it be...? A Magician never reveals his secrets." Another check of his watch and he pushed off the Jeep, moving towards the pit casually and retrieving a small pack of white powder from his pocket. From all the drugs he's been under and seen, Jason knew that it definitely wasn't cocaine. Then Langley began to whistle a soft tune. Jason couldn’t recognize what song it was from. The pouch was opened and the smell hit Jason like a stack of bricks.

"Fuck, what is that shit?" Jason asked, waving his hand through to the air, as if to dispel the strong scent. Langley glanced back at him; already his eyes were dilated. 

"This...?" The powder was pinched between two fingers and rubbed together until nothing was left. "Prototype drugs Vaas was working with..." The bag was tipped over into his other palm as he continued, "...Didn't work out too well...it was fine at first...but the illusions it caused backfired on the testers and they were subjected to horrible nightmares..." More chuckles, followed by the sound of excited barks.

"Here he comes..." Langley moved back over to the Jeep, leaning against the frame casually. Jason sat in front of the bushes, watching as Lassie came into view, a watch clamped firmly in her mouth. He still found it hard to believe that the German Shepard understood what Langley had told her. 

"Give that back ya mangy beast!" McDuvan's voice was loud and angry as he charged up the hill after the Shepard. Lassie bounced around on the top beside the Jeep. McDuvan ran up to the hound, managing to catch a firm hold on the loose chain collar around her neck. McDuvan angrily removed the watch from her teeth, making a pleased noise knowing that it was undamaged.

"McDuvan!" Langley made himself known, walking towards the man and resting a hand on his shoulder. McDuvan nearly jumped out of his skin, but he seemed to calm down after that. Langley leaned close, the scent from his cigar making McDuvan cringe. "Fancy tha'!" His accent began to become more pronounced as he spoke. "Glad you could come, glad you could come!" Jason gave a bored huff and McDuvan's eyes fell on him. 

"Foster?" Jason merely shrugged his shoulders. The Privateer’s eyes jumped between Langley and Jason. Lassie had long quieted down. Only now, she was staring up at the man from her place. It was scary how serious this Shepard looked. “What the hell is goin’ on here!?” He knocked Langley’s arm off his shoulder, baring his teeth at the two men. Acting like a trapped animal. Jason has seen it far too many times.

“I don’t appreciate you makin’ others try to touch my things.” Langley hissed. His voice didn’t sound like his own. It was filled with loathing and hate. Jason kept forgetting the gangly man was capable of feeling such hate. Then again, he had been proved wrong before. His free hand shot forward, grabbing the front of McDuvan’s uniform. He dragged him close, practically spitting in his face. “So...a little punishments in order-” There was a snap of tension. Jason stood quickly, about to yell at Langley to stop. But it had been too late. He had smashed his drug filled hand into McDuvan’s face and gave a hard shove. McDuvan flailed backwards with a yell of shock, hatred, and maybe fear?

McDuvan fell straight into the pit.

Jason ran at Langley, but the pirate had already slipped over the edge, catching hold of some vines. He slid down them halfway, grinning now. Jason was watching from up top, staring into the pit. He heard a splash as McDuvan hit the water, followed by more splashing as he resurfaced and fought to stay above the water. "That was quite sudden..." Jason snapped when Langley climbed back up, hauling himself over the ledge. Langley was cackling down at the screaming, angry man fighting to get himself out of the water and back onto land. 

"Shhhh..." Langley tapped Jason's forehead and he whistled to Lassie. The German Shepard perked from her place. The serious look dropped completely off her face. "Thanks for comin along for the ride, Brody. I can give ya a ride back to Bridge Control if you'd like?" Jason glanced at the pirate as he whipped out a Repair Tool from the trunk, popping the hood and beginning to work on the engine. 

"Is there even a way out of there...?" Jason jerked his thumb over his shoulder, earning himself a loud burst of laughter from the much thinner man. 

"Yeah...he could climb up the vine...and then there's a walkout escape in the side of the cliff..." Shutting the hood, he shoved the Repair Tool back into the trunk. Thankfully there wasn’t any lasting damage from their ride. Lassie leapt into the back seat, tongue lolling out of her mouth as she panted heavily in the thick humid weather. Jason made an annoyed noise, pacing over to the Jeep and situating himself into the passenger's seat. Jason nearly gagged as the dog panted away in his face. He turned his nose away.

"So what does this mean now? Am I forever allowed in Bridge Control or what? Do only the pirates look after the place? Have I even ran into any of them that will recognize me?" Langley shrugged his shoulders. As Langley started the engine, he began his own wave of questions. 

"Have you ran into a Molotov pirate named Lewis? Ugly as fuck and missin' teef?" Jason gave a small nod, remembering once as the forest was nearly incinerated to ashes when he was being chased by the man in question. Langley started up the vehicle and began to make their way back to camp, Jason clinging on for dear life as the pirate drove, nearly sinking the Jeep in a river and running over animals left and right.

"Don't worry mate...I'll talk to them."


	13. Best Served Cold

Helicopter blades whirled, but the metal beast did not belong to Nyreene. Jason kept low, hiding in his seat with his head ducked. Jason was trying to seem small, but the pilot of the chopper knew he was there. Not by seeing him, no. Angus had loudly declared that _Foster_ was here. _Foster_ was _finally_ doing his job. 

_Fuck that Englishman._

Thankfully, the pilot was familiar. Sandy hair was swept back and tucked beneath a yellow and black beanie. It didn’t seem to be the standard Privateer hat. Maybe this guy was higher up than he thought? Nonetheless, Jason knew him. It was Wiggins. Jack Wiggins to be more precise. He had met the man back at the Hanger, when he assisted Nyreene in saving Phil and their beloved helicopter, the HagRaven. Jason remained there for at least an hour afterwards, and he had quickly learned the names of each pilot. Seemed like Hoyt preferred to keep them all together. 

But Jack was here. Jason didn’t know why. His helicopter was parked in the middle of the road. Jason inwardly hoped nobody would crash into it with their cars. Jack was dressed in standard Privateer uniform, but a thinly-layered jacket was pulled on over the top of it. The man’s hands were stuffed into the pockets as he briskly jogged after Angus, smiling curiously. They were walking in his direction, and Jason’s lips pulled back into a light growl. 

_Great._

“Foster!” Angus was at his side now, leaning over the chair as casually as possible. “I know ya got here earlier in the morning, and I know you’re tired, but a friend’a mine needs a little bit of expertise done.” Angus gestured over his shoulder as Jack approached, and Jason was decently surprised when the Privateer’s face molded.

“Hey now! It’s only one guy, Angus. I don’t need an army of traitors slaughtered.” A released huff of breath and Jack shook his head in a disappointed fashion. It seems Jason’s fame as Foster spread swiftly through rumors. “And if he did want to help, I’d rather him not be forced into it.”Jason’s head rose slowly, listening in.

“That guy though-”

“No, Angus.” Jack sighed and one hand abandoned its place in his pocket. Jack, now that Jason really looked, seemed worse for ware. The pilot didn’t seem upbeat as normal. Normal being the last he had seen of him. “Thanks for helping...but it’s better if I do it alone-”

“No, no...” Jason interrupted, standing swiftly to his feet. “It’s fine...I don’t mind...tell me what’s wrong.” Jack’s face grew a look of amazement, and then relief.

“Ah...there’s another pilot. A rival, if you will.” Jack looked uncomfortable, nervous even. “He’s taken the rivalry to the next level...a level that can’t be tolerated.” Even Angus looked uncomfortable now. What had this other pilot done? “He doesn’t deserve to live anymore as a result of it.” That was all Jason needed to hear. Hanging around Bridge Control all morning, with nothing to do, was nice and all, but Jason preferred to be on the move. Sitting around and waiting was something he hadn’t done in a long time. Jason held his hands up to stop Jack’s rant, and when the pilot ceased speaking, he saw the confused look Jack gave.

“I’m sold, Jack. Let’s head out there.” Jack visibly brightened, already appearing in far better spirits than he had been when he came in here the first place. Angus waved them off as Jack, excitedly, bounded off back to his helicopter. The Privateer was ecstatic, practically bouncing into the front seat. Jason took the space beside him, taking the offered headset from him. “Where’s this guy hang out??” Jason asked loudly as the noise of the helicopter increased.

“Ever since our fallout, the guy keeps away from the Hanger.” Jack replied, drawing back on the wheel and pulling the metal beast slowly into the air. The pirates ducked for cover; most of them held tightly to their hats and glasses to prevent the air from blowing them off. Jason barked out a laugh. “Surrounds himself with others he uses as bodyguards...but they ain’t always with him.” They rose higher than the hills, and a simple adjustment of the steering wheel had the copter disappearing into the clouds. “And I’d rather this be done stealthily.”

“Stealth kill, got it.” The cockpit was pleasantly warm, and Jack seemed to be in a much better mood. That was good. Perhaps he could get the complete story out of him when the job was done? He really didn’t want to dampen the man’s mood now that they were on their way. “Do they normally keep their distance from him or am I going to have to sneak through tightly packed corridors killing them one by one?” Jason was really fine with either.

“I just want this one guy dead...and I’d rather not have it be linked back with me. Please refrain from killing the other guys...” Jack laughed lightly, pulling the wheel forward to gently careen the helicopter down towards the ground. The clouds dispersed around them and Jason could see the lush green trees. The hilly expanse of the South island was truly an amazing sight. But, Jason could see the roads linking through a small town; the town consisted of a few houses slotting along the side of the streets. 

The helicopter touched ground on a hill nearby. Quite the distance was put between them and the town, and yet from here, Jason could see a small group of Privateers sitting about in chairs. Like the Privateers at Thurston Town, they seemed rather uninterested in their new job. A photo was passed off to him. “I’m gonna get lost, alright? Radio in when he’s gone, okay?” Jason gave Jack a thumbs up and, after he climbed out, Jack departed. His gun was placed back in its holster; Jason descended the hill and entered the small town. He spotted a store, but it was closed. Good on her. 

Privateers, however, sat up in their seats and eyed him slowly as he approached. Jason made a motion to a nearby Jeep, and that was enough to settle them. The warrior jogged towards the vehicle, settling in the driver’s seat. It was here that he took the time to examine the picture thoroughly. Great. The pilot in the photo was one he had seen before. The man was a Heavy; not even considered a true pilot. He was more of the gunman with a LMG leaning out the side of a helicopter. If Jason recalled, his name was Kowalski. Kent Kowalski and he hadn’t joined them at the campfire that night at the hanger. He wasn’t too friendly of a man either. Kent had snapped at him, quite rudely, when he had been leaving.

Anything to get a leg-up in the ranks, Jason supposed.

Jason tucked the photo away, and that was when he spotted the Privateer. He was walking the length of a house; his eyes scanned around like a turret, keeping an eye out. Jason glanced behind him; the Privateers were no longer watching him. They were loosely, and boredly, staring out into the sky. They seemed out of it and excessively bored. Jason grinned slowly. His eyes twinkled with deviousness. He put the Jeep into drive, pulling out of the impromptu parking spot and carefully driving the length of the road.

He parked again in some foliage down the road. Kent had disappeared into a building on the far outskirts of the village. The house looked more or less abandoned, but Jason swiftly glanced back. None of the Privateers seemed to notice that the guy they were supposed to be protecting was alone. Alone with a man that was sent to kill him. Jason carefully climbed out of the Jeep, ducking low and creeping towards the closest windows. It was boarded off, but the warrior could see through the cracks. Kent was seated at a rickety old table; a headset was pulled over his ears and was connected to, what appeared to be, a radio. He was messing with the dial, and Jason could hear heavy static. 

“Yeah, yeah. I know.” Kent spoke gruffly. “I tapped into the radios today. Can’t seem to find ‘im though.” He leaned back in his chair, and Jason already wanted to burst in there and knock him to the ground. “Those pirates like jammin’ the radio waves with that obnoxious music.” The man gave the knob an adjustment. “But in no time, I’ll have Jason Brody figured out. See where he is on the islands. Those pirate fucks might be helping him.” Kowalski knew more than Jason thought. Not only was he a danger to Jack, but he was now a danger to his cover as well. Jason growled quietly beneath his breath, removing his knife from its holster and carefully maneuvering himself around the length of the building.

He made sure to keep his eyes on him. Kowalski wouldn’t be getting a leg up. He won’t be escaping. Not only that, but the machine he was using will be smashed to pieces. Whoever Kowalski was talking to, they’d never hear from him again. Jason pulled back from the windows, crouching in the foliage. He could hear the Heavy laugh loudly and slam his hand on the table. He was obviously enjoying the new conversation topic. Jason reached the door. It was closed, but not locked. Carefully, it was opened and Jason stood straight as he entered. And the Warrior definitely wasn’t careful about slamming it shut.

Kowalski shot up in shock, ripping the headset off his ears and jerking around angrily. As if he were a cornered animal, he bared his teeth and grabbed for his own knife. It was pointed at Jason dangerously. “Who the fuck-” He snapped, but quieted down, looking confused. “...Foster? The hell are you doing here?!” The knife wasn’t lowered and Jason let his eyes narrow further. Whoever was on the radio was yelling something, but the Warrior didn’t listen. The machete in his hand was spun, and Kowalski was looking a little pale. “Foster!”

“You’re fucked.” Jason growled, making the man freeze completely. “I was sent here to kill you...” Kowalski’s eyes were growing wider by the second. Every word Jason spoke made him more and more tense. “But, as it turns out, a Privateer knows too much now. Just know it was Jack who sent me.” 

“Jack? Wait. Foster! I-I can pay you! Just back off. Back off!!” Kowlaski was snapping at him, backing up further as Jason began to approach him. The dangerous glint in the younger man’s eyes glowed, and Kent could see his own terrified expression glinting back at him in Jason’s knife. “ _FOSTER_!”

Kent’s body was left to grow cold in the foliage. It would certainly make some scavenger happy. The radio lay in pieces on the table; occasionally, sparks would flicker out of the disconnected wires. Jason closed and locked the door with a key he had found on the Heavy’s body. The key, then, was tossed out into the bushes, gone forever. All picky-like, Jason brushed and flicked the blood off his Privateer uniform as he re-approached his jeep, ready to hoof it back to the meet-up point. 

Jack had landed the helicopter back on the hill, and as Jason approached, a towel was offered to him. Jason took the towel, wiping any excess blood off his uniform. Jack stepped out of the copter with a smile, pulling open the back door and revealing a cooler strapped down in the back. “Thank you.” The smile on Jack’s face was genuine as he climbed into the back and took a seat there. “It’s...it’s a huge weight off.” 

“It wasn’t necessarily stealthy...” Jason admitted. “He heard me come in, and I wanted him to know who sent me.” Jack gave a disapproving look, yet the smile on his face said different. The younger man decided to change the subject. “If it isn’t too much to ask, what was it he did?” Jason set the towel down, taking the open seat beside Jack. The pilot retrieved two beers from the cooler, setting one in Jason’s open hand.

“...Did you know I didn’t come to Hoyt?” Jack began as he popped the lid of his bottle off. “He came to me. Offered me a job immediately after I was sent home from Afghanistan. Heard that I was one of the best in the Air Force.” Jason took the bottle opener from Jack, listening intently as he spoke. “I turned down the job...told him that I had a family to get back to. Told him they came first. That was the mistake.

“When I got home...? All of them...dead. Both brothers, my mom, my dad...and my older sister. Hoyt said in his note that the same fate would happen to my younger sister if I didn’t come to work for him. I...I had no choice.” Jack’s shoulders slumped, and Jason couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “He used her as a way of keeping me in line...and Kent...? Kent blabbed to Hoyt that it was _my_ fault that the HagRaven team escaped when it really wasn’t-” Jason’s breath caught in his throat. “So...Hoyt called me into his office, dragged me down to where she was kept and put a bullet through her head.”

“Jesus...” Jason felt weight on his shoulders; it wasn’t the weight of the other man’s hand. It was the weight of guilt. It had been Jason’s fault that Nyreene and Phil had escaped and an innocent little girl had been murdered because of it. “Well...I guess he doesn’t have anyone to keep you in line anymore?” Jack laughed, cold and bitter.

“You don’t have to keep a broken man in line.” Jason’s gaze hit the ground. The grass and flowers swayed only slightly to the side with the breeze.

“I know how it feels....I lost....I lost my brother too.” Jack’s gaze switched to him. “He was a soldier...strong, brave. A whole lot better of a man than I ever could be. He was the man I wish I could be.” Jack’s eyes were on him now, looking over his face and his features. He looked as if he were contemplating something. “And...” Jason felt as if he could trust this man. They had both been put through the same thing. Murdered family and captive sibling. “Hoyt currently has my brother too...”

“Brody...” It came immediate. “I...I knew.” _Jack knew?_ “Angus....he told me who you really were.” _Again? Fuck that Englishman_. “But you really don’t have to worry. I won’t tell. Cuz you and I? We’ve been through the same experience. One of us should come out on top of Hoyt.” Jason’s anger diminished quickly, and he gave Jack a pitiful look. The pilot offered an awkward look. 

“Ah...we...we should get you back before you’re missed, ay?” The bottle was tossed into a compartment and Jack climbed back to the front. Jason continued to sit there for a few moments before following. 

“Jack?” The man’s head turned, looking at him with one brow raised. “Hoyt’s going to pay for what he’s done. I promise.”

The little smile was worth it.


End file.
